FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Military Training Budgets

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the budgets for the training of military and security personnel from overseas (a) in the UK and (b) overseas for (i) each of the past two years, (ii) the current year and (iii) future years for which estimates are available.

Mike O'Brien: Funding for the training of military and security personnel (including police forces, customs and border guards) from overseas comes from a variety of FCO departmental budgets. It supports FCO objectives such as promoting international peace and stability, and improved quality of life world-wide through good governance and crime reduction. A breakdown of approximate expenditure as requested by financial year (f/y) is:
	
		£ 
		
			  F/y 2000–01 F/y 2001–02 F/y 2002–03 
		
		
			 UK training 2,964,040 671,829 157,431 
			 Overseas training 5,676,188 4,690,909 4,890,181 
		
	
	Future estimates are not yet available.
	The reduction of FCO expenditure in f/ys 2001–02 and 2002–03 does not reflect a reduction in activity. It is because the FCO contributed a large part of its military and security training funding to the two cross- departmental Conflict Prevention Pools (involving FCO, MOD, DfID and HMT) established in April 2001 for Africa and the rest of the world. Each of the four Government Departments made a contribution to the pools. Many of the training activities continue to be supported by the pools because they achieve HMG's conflict prevention objectives overseas. In f/y 2001–02, the Africa Pool had a budget of £50 million and this will remain the same through to f/y 2003–04. The Global Pool was allocated £60 million for f/y 2001–02, £66 million for this financial year and will have £76 million to spend in f/y 2003–04.
	Information on the FCO's ASSIST training budget f/y 2000–01, which was the principle contribution to the pools is available from an earlier answer given by the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Mr. Bradshaw) to my hon. Friend the Member for Dundee, West (Mr. Ross) on 10 January 2002, Official Report, column 957W.

Regulatory Impact Unit

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many members of his Department have been employed in its regulatory impact unit in the past five years; and if he will make a statement.

Jack Straw: As a non-regulatory Department, the FCO does not have a dedicated regulatory impact unit. Since 1997 issues relating to regulatory impact have been dealt with by a member of FCO staff as part of his overall duties.

Visa Applications

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many Egyptian students seeking to enter the UK on medical grounds have been refused visas in the past year; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: holding answer 3 July 2002
	We do not maintain statistics on the number of entry clearance applications received, granted or refused on the basis of seeking to enter the UK on medical grounds. Nor do we at present maintain statistics on the nationality of applicants, although we are currently looking at ways of improving our information technology to enable us to do so.

Export Licences

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how the Government consider applications for export licences for the supply of military equipment for incorporation into final products for possible onward export; and if he will make a statement.

Jack Straw: In recent years there have been far reaching changes in the defence industry in the United Kingdom, the rest of Europe and the United States. Against the background of the end of the Cold War and the resulting reduction in defence budgets world wide, the defence industry has been subject to massive rationalisation. One consequence of this change is that increasingly defence goods are manufactured from components sourced in several different countries.
	This restructuring of the defence industry presents new challenges for the Government's approach to export licensing. Many export licence applications are for goods which are to be incorporated in defence equipment in a second country, which thereafter may be exported to a third country.
	The Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria set out in a statement by my right hon. Friend the Member for Neath (Mr. Hain), Official Report, column 199–203W on 26 October 2000, make clear that they "will not be applied mechanistically" to decisions on export licence applications, but rather "on a case-by-case basis, using judgment and common sense". The criteria do not provide specific guidance on what approach should be adopted in these "incorporation" cases.
	Other EU and NATO member states face the same rapidly changing environment for their defence industries as the UK. Enquiries by Her Majesty's Government suggest, however, that while as yet there is no common policy in such cases, many of our European partners recognise the need to adopt a special approach towards cases involving incorporation for onward export.
	After very careful consideration, Her Majesty's Government have, therefore, decided that it is necessary to set out how it will in future approach licence applications for goods where it is understood that the goods are to be incorporated into products for onward export. The Government will continue to assess such applications on a case by case basis against the Consolidated Criteria, while at the same time having regard to, inter alia, the following factors:
	(a) the export control policies and effectiveness of the export control system of the incorporating country;
	(b) the importance of the UK's defence and security relationship with the incorporating country;
	(c) the materiality and significance of the UK-origin goods in relation to the goods into which they are to be incorporated, and in relation to any end-use of the finished products which might give rise to concern;
	(d) the ease with which the UK-origin goods, or significant parts of them, could be removed from the goods into which they are to be incorporated; and
	(e) the standing of the entity to which the goods are to be exported.
	Against this background the Government have considered its response to a number of applications for the export of parts, subsystems and components to the USA for incorporation into equipment eventually destined for other countries. These include Head Up Display units (HUDs) for incorporation in F-16 aircraft scheduled for delivery to Israel in 2003. The UK content in F-16s is less than 1 per cent. in value, but the supply of HUDs is part of a long-standing collaboration in this US programme. Any interruption to the supply of these components would have serious implications for the UK's defence relations with the United States.
	The Government continue to be seriously concerned about the situation in Israel and the Occupied Territories. There has to be a break to the cycle of violence, which has brought so much misery to both peoples, and a resumption of the peace process. We are working closely with partners including the US to reduce the level of tension and to bring about a sustainable and peaceful settlement through negotiation.
	The United States Government maintains a strong and effective export licensing system. The Quadripartite Committee has noted that the United States' conventional arms transfer policy
	"does not appear to differ in any important way from the EU Code or the UK national criteria. In some respects . . . it is an improvement" (HC 467 xxix 73 (25 July 2000)). Appropriate use of arms exported to Israel by the US is the subject of regular dialogue between the two countries, and when the US have concerns they make these known to the Israelis (as required by Congressional legislation). The State Department has been monitoring Israeli actions carefully and will continue to do so.
	At the same time the Government carefully take into account the importance of maintaining a strong and dynamic defence relationship with the US. This relationship is fundamental to the UK's national security as well as to our ability to play a strong and effective role in the world. The importance of this role has been demonstrated repeatedly in recent months. There are also wider benefits to the UK's national security of maintaining a strong indigenous defence industrial capability.
	Taking account of all these considerations, the Government considered that the applications should be approved, and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has today granted licences for the export of the HUDs, and other equipment to the USA. The Government will apply similar considerations to similar applications in future.

European Foreign Ministers

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what issues will be discussed at the forthcoming meeting of European Foreign Ministers; and when it is.

Peter Hain: The General Affairs Council meets on 22–23 July.
	The provisional agenda proposed by the presidency includes, under Horizontal Affairs: the work programme for the presidency and for the Commission; progress of work in other council configurations; enlargement; follow-up to the European Council in Seville: and follow-up to the EU Action Plan on terrorism. Under External Affairs the Council is expected to discuss: the EU's priorities in the area of conflict prevention; the middle east; western Balkans; Zimbabwe; EU-US trade (steel); preparation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development; Afghanistan and ESDP.

Gibraltar

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what grounds it was decided not to hand out leaflets on Gibraltar during the overseas territories exhibition organised by his Office on Britain's overseas territories; and who took the decision.

Mike O'Brien: holding answer 5 July 2002
	No such decision was taken. An updated information leaflet on Gibraltar was prepared specially for the event, and was inserted into all the packs prepared before the event. These packs ran out on the day, due to high demand. Additional packs were prepared but, due to an oversight, these were given out for a short period without Gibraltar leaflets. This situation was quickly corrected.

Gibraltar

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government's policy is on the status of joint proposals agreed by the United Kingdom and Spain on the future of Gibraltar, should they be rejected by the people of Gibraltar in a referendum; if such proposals would form the basis of future negotiations; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Hain: holding answer 5 July 2002
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 2 July 2002, Official Report, column 276W. As I said in Westminster Hall on 18 June 2002, Official Report, column 38WH, no deal will be implemented unless the people of Gibraltar agree in a referendum.

Bermuda Boundaries Commission

Roger Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library a copy of the report of the Bermuda Boundaries Commission and related supporting written submissions.

Mike O'Brien: The Boundaries Commission has not yet produced its report. When it does appear, a copy will be placed in Libraries of both Houses.

International Criminal Court

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the countries that (a) have signed the accession treaty to the International Criminal Court, (b) are expected to sign and (c) have deposited the instruments of ratification, giving the date of ratification in each case; and which of the non-ratificants have indicated that they may withhold their ratification.

Jack Straw: Following is a table of countries which have signed, ratified or acceded to the Rome statute, containing relevant dates. I have no specific information about countries expected to sign up to the statute; however, there have been eight ratifications in the last month, bringing the total to 75.
	We are not systematically informed of countries' intentions to withhold ratification. However, on 6 May 2002, the United States declared its intention not to become a party. On 30 June the Israeli cabinet announced that it too would withhold ratification.
	
		Participants
		
			 Participant Signature Ratification, Acceptance (A), Approval (AA), Accession (a) 
		
		
			 Albania 18 July 1998  
			 Algeria 28 December 2000  
			 Andorra 18 July 1998 30 April 2001 
			 Angola 7 October 1998  
			 Antigua and Barbuda 23 October 1998 18 June 2001 
			 Argentina 8 January 1999 8 February 2001 
			 Armenia 1 October 1999  
			 Australia 9 December 1998 1 July 2002 
			 Austria 7 October 1998 28 December 2000 
			 Bahamas 29 December 2000  
			 Bahrain 11 December 2000  
			 Bangladesh 16 September 1999  
			 Barbados 8 September 2000  
			 Belgium 10 September 1998 28 June 2000 
			 Belize 5 April 2000 5 April 2000 
			 Benin 24 September 1999 22 January 2002 
			 Bolivia 17 July 1998 27 June 2002 
			 Bosnia and Herzegovina 17 July 2000 11 April 2002 
			 Botswana 8 September 2000 8 September 2000 
			 Brazil 7 February 2000 20 June 2002 
			 Bulgaria 11 February 1999 11 April 2002 
			 Burkina Faso 30 November 1998  
			 Burundi 13 January 1999  
			 Cambodia 23 October 2000 11 April 2002 
			 Cameroon 17 July 1998  
			 Canada 18 December 1998 7 July 2000 
			 Cape Verde 28 December 2000  
			 Central African Republic 7 December 1999 3 October 2001 
			 Chad 20 October 1999  
			 Chile 11 September 1998  
			 Colombia 10 December 1999  
			 Comoros 22 September 2000  
			 Congo 17 July 1998  
			 Costa Rica 7 October 1998 7 June 2001 
			 Cote d'Ivoire 30 November 1998  
			 Croatia 12 October 1998 21 May 2001 
			 Cyprus 15 October 1998 7 March 2002 
			 Czech Republic 13 April 1999  
			 Democratic Republic of the Congo 8 September 2000 11 April 2002 
			 Denmark(2) 25 September 1998 21 June 2001 
			 Djibouti 7 October 1998  
			 Dominica  12 February 2001 a 
			 Dominican Republic 8 September 2000  
			 Ecuador 7 October 1998 5 February 2002 
			 Egypt 26 December 2000  
			 Eritrea 7 October 1998  
			 Estonia 27 December 1999 30 January 2002 
			 Fiji 29 November 1999 29 November 1999 
			 Finland 7 October 1998 29 December 2000 
			 France 18 July 1998 9 June 2000 
			 Gabon 22 December 1998 20 September 2000 
			 Gambia 4 December 1998 28 June 2002 
			 Georgia 18 July 1998  
			 Germany 10 December 1998 11 December 2000 
			 Ghana 18 July 1998 20 December 1999 
			 Greece 18 July 1998 15 May 2002 
			 Guinea 7 September 2000  
			 Guinea-Bissau 12 September 2000  
			 Guyana 28 December 2000  
			 Haiti 26 February 1999  
			 Honduras 7 October 1998 1 July 2002 
			 Hungary 15 January 1999 30 November 2001 
			 Iceland 26 August 1998 25 May 2000 
			 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 31 December 2000  
			 Ireland 7 October 1998 11 April 2002 
			 Israel 31 December 2000  
			 Italy 18 July 1998 26 July 1999 
			 Jamaica 8 September 2000  
			 Jordan 7 October 1998 11 April 2002 
			 Kenya 11 August 1999  
			 Kuwait 8 September 2000  
			 Kyrgyzstan 8 December 1998  
			 Latvia 22 April 1999 28 June 2002 
			 Lesotho 30 November 1998 6 September 2000 
			 Liberia 17 July 1998  
			 Liechtenstein 18 July 1998 2 October 2001 
			 Lithuania 10 December 1998  
			 Luxembourg 13 October 1998 8 September 2000 
			 Madagascar 18 July 1998  
			 Malawi 2 March 1999  
			 Mali 17 July 1998 16 August 2000 
			 Malta 17 July 1998  
			 Marshall Islands 6 September 2000 7 December 2000 
			 Mauritius 11 November 1998 5 March 2002 
			 Mexico 7 September 2000  
			 Monaco 18 July 1998  
			 Mongolia 29 December 2000 11 April 2002 
			 Morocco 8 September 2000  
			 Mozambique 28 December 2000  
			 Namibia 27 October 1998 25 June 2002 
			 Nauru 13 December 2000 12 November 2001  
			 Netherlands(3) 18 July 1998 17 July 2001 A 
			 New Zealand(4) 7 October 1998 7 September 2000 
			 Niger 17 July 1998 11 April 2002 
			 Nigeria 1 June 2000 27 September 2001 
			 Norway 28 August 1998 16 February 2000 
			 Oman 20 December 2000  
			 Panama 18 July 1998 21 March 2002 
			 Paraguay 7 October 1998 14 May 2001 
			 Peru 7 December 2000 10 November 2001 
			 Philippines 28 December 2000  
			 Poland 9 April 1999 12 November 2001 
			 Portugal 7 October 1998 5 February 2002 
			 Republic of Korea 8 March 2000  
			 Republic of Moldova 8 September 2000  
			 Romania 7 July 1999 11 April 2002 
			 Russian Federation 13 September 2000  
			 Saint Lucia 27 August 1999  
			 Samoa 17 July 1998  
			 San Marino 18 July 1998 13 May 1999 
			 Sao Tome and Principe 28 December 2000  
			 Senegal 18 July 1998 2 February 1999 
			 Seychelles 28 December 2000  
			 Sierra Leone 17 October 1998 15 September 2000 
			 Slovakia 23 December 1998 11 April 2002 
			 Slovenia 7 October 1998 31 December 2001 
			 Solomon Islands 3 December 1998  
			 South Africa 17 July 1998 27 November 2000 
			 Spain 18 July 1998 24 October 2000 
			 Sudan 8 September 2000  
			 Sweden 7 October 1998 28 June 2001 
			 Switzerland 18 July 1998 12 October 2001 
			 Syrian Arab Republic 29 November 2000  
			 Tajikistan 30 November 1998 5 May 2000 
			 Thailand 2 October 2000  
			 The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 7 October 1998 6 March 2002 
			 Trinidad and Tobago 23 March 1999 6 April 1999 
			 Uganda 17 March 1999 14 June 2002 
			 Ukraine 20 January 2000  
			 United Arab Emirates 27 November 2000  
			 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 30 November 1998 4 October 2001 
			 United Republic of Tanzania 29 December 2000  
			 United States of America(5) 31 December 2000  
			 Uruguay 19 December 2000 28 June 2002 
			 Uzbekistan 29 December 2000  
			 Venezuela 14 October 1998 7 June 2002 
			 Yemen 28 December 2000  
			 Yugoslavia 19 December 2000 6 September 2001 
			 Zambia 17 July 1998  
			 Zimbabwe 17 July 1998

International Criminal Court

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects Afghanistan to ratify the International Criminal Court treaty.

Jack Straw: This issue of when Afghanistan might ratify the Statute establishing the International Criminal Court is a matter for the Government of Afghanistan. I have no specific information on their approach/ timetable, but I will make inquiries and write to the hon. Member.

HOUSE OF COMMONS

HM Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother

Gordon Prentice: To ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission, what costs were borne by the House in respect of the funeral of HM Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.

Archy Kirkwood: The costs for the lying in state of HM the Queen Mother will be shared between the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The Commons share is estimated at £495,000. I understand that the Department of Culture, Media and Sport have agreed to bear at least part of this cost, and discussions about payment are under way.

WALES

Postal Services

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he will next meet representatives from Consignia to discuss postal services in Wales.

Paul Murphy: I am due to meet with a senior representative of Consignia in Wales later this month.

Air Transport

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with (a) the National Assembly for Wales and (b) airlines about increasing the number of chartered flights in Wales.

Paul Murphy: I have regular discussions with Assembly Ministers about issues affecting Wales including a wide range of transport matters.
	Assembly officials have been closely involved in the Regional Air Service studies the reports of which are to be published soon. These regional consultation documents will set out options for the development of air services and airports in the UK over the next 30 years.
	The Regional Air Service studies include consideration of all forms of air traffic including charter flights. I understand that Welsh airports are actively marketing the facilities they are able to offer to charter operators.

Regulatory Impact Unit

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many members of his Department have been employed in its regulatory impact unit in the past five years; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Murphy: My Department was created in July 1999. It does not have a regulatory impact unit.

Buildings Insurance

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the cost of buildings insurance to his Department was (a) before and (b) after 11 September 2001.

Paul Murphy: Consistent with Government accounting, my Department does not insure its building.

Female Staff

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what percentage of the staff of his Department are women; and what the percentage was in June 1997.

Paul Murphy: My Department came into existence on 1 July 1999. At page 23 of the Departmental Report 2002 (Cm 5431) is a table showing the number of women at each grade. The overall percentage is 59 per cent.

Elan Valley SSSI

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what measures the Government are taking to protect the Elan Valley site of special scientific interest from development.

Paul Murphy: In Wales, planning and nature conservation are responsibilities of the National Assembly.

Bird Habitats

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to safeguard the natural habitat of red kites and golden plovers in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Murphy: This is primarily a matter for the National Assembly for Wales.
	In line with EC Directive (79/409/EEC) on the Conservation of Wild Birds, the Assembly is taking appropriate steps to preserve, maintain or re-establish a sufficient diversity and area of habitats for all species of naturally occurring birds.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Public Building Design

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what the timetable is for the publication of each of the departmental design action plans to deliver the Prime Minister's Better Public Building Initiative;
	(2)  if she will list the Ministerial Design Champions.

Kim Howells: The Ministerial Design Champions group has been chaired by Lord Falconer of Thoroton since October 2000. The group consists of the following:
	Department for Culture, Media and Sport—Baroness Blackstone
	Home Office—Lord Filkin
	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs—Elliot Morley
	Department of Trade and Industry—Brian Wilson
	Treasury—Paul Boateng
	Ministry of Defence—Dr. Lewis Moonie
	Department for Work and Pensions—Malcolm Wicks
	Department for Education and Skills—Baroness Ashton
	Lord Chancellor's Department—Minister to be appointed
	Department of Health—Lord Hunt
	Foreign and Commonwealth Office—Denis MacShane
	Office of the Deputy Prime Minister—Lord Rooker
	Department for Transport—Minister to be appointed.
	A Better Public Buildings website will be launched on 5 July. The following Departments will publish their action plans either on this website or in hard copy by that date:
	Department for Culture, Media and Sport
	Department for Work and Pensions
	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
	Department of Trade and Industry
	Lord Chancellor's Department
	Home Office.
	The following Departments have already published action plans:
	Ministry of Defence
	Department of Health
	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
	The former Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions was preparing an action plan for publication both in hard copy and on the new website in time for the launch on 5 July. Due to the recent departmental changes, new action plans will now need to be prepared for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Department for Transport. The Department for Education and Skills plan to publish an Action Plan later this autumn.

Building Values

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the buildings owned by her Department and estimate the market value of each of them.

Kim Howells: The Department for Culture Media and Sport does not own the buildings on its estate.
	The majority of properties managed by the Royal Parks Agency are owned by the Sovereign in right of the Crown, and are therefore inalienable.
	The Secretary of State has the following property interests in the Royal Parks Agency.
	1. Pembroke Lodge in Richmond Park is owned by the Crown Estate Commissioners and is leased to the Secretary of State for a term of 99 years and five days from 31 March 1992. Its market value was assessed at £375,000 in March 2000.
	2. The Secretary of State owns the freehold to Watermill House, 213 Uxbridge Road, Hampton. It borders the Longford River (which is managed by the Royal Parks Agency) and its market value was assessed at £67,000 in March 1999.

Buildings Insurance

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the cost of buildings insurance to her Department was (a) before and (b) after 11 September 2001.

Kim Howells: The Department for Culture Media and Sport and the Royal Parks Agency do not purchase insurance to cover buildings on their estates.

Clarence House

Colin Pickthall: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport who will meet the bill for the refurbishment of Clarence House; and what the total cost will be to public funds.

Kim Howells: Detailed surveys are currently taking place to ascertain the extent of the Clarence House refurbishment works, which include work on fire compartmentation, automatic fire detection, upgrade of electrical and mechanical services and some redecoration. It is not possible to provide a firm estimate of the cost of the refurbishment until the completion of these surveys. The refurbishment will be funded from the current level of grant in aid for the maintenance of the Occupied Royal Palaces.

Statistics

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the statistics that are collected by her Department by English parliamentary constituency; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: My Department collects statistics by Parliamentary Constituency on one topic, namely Lottery Awards, and these are based upon information provided by Lottery distributors.
	A database, which is available on my Department's website at www.lottery.culture.gov.uk, provides details of individual awards along with the total number and value. This can be analysed further by type of good cause, area details and distributing body.

Timber

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether grants for construction, restoration and refurbishment issued by the Lottery are covered by Government requirements regarding timber procurement; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: This information is not readily available. I will, however, write to the hon. Member as soon as it becomes available, placing copies of my letter in the Libraries of both Houses.

Charitable Status

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  if she will make a statement on the proposals of the Charity Commissioners to restrict eligibility for charitable status to those sports that in the opinion of the Charity Commissioners are beneficial to physical health; and what discussions her Department has had with the Charity Commissioners over the criteria they are using to determine the eligibility of different sports for charitable status;
	(2)  whether her Department has discussed with the Charity Commissioners the recognition for the purposes of charitable status of those sports already recognised by the Government through Sport England and Sport UK as eligible for Lottery and Exchequer funding; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: The Charity Commission has confirmed that no sports are excluded in principle from applying for charitable status. If a sport does not meet the criterion for healthy recreation then the Commission will consider an application on other grounds such as social inclusion or education. Full discussion on the revised guidance for charitable status and sport was carried out with the Charity Commission and representatives from sports bodies.

Annual Leave

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the average annual leave entitlement is for staff in her Department in 2002.

Kim Howells: The Department does not maintain central records of annual leave entitlement for staff so this information could be provided only at disproportionate costs.
	Staff outside the senior civil service within the Department are entitled to 25 days annual leave per year on joining the civil service and after 10 years service this is then increased to 30 days per year. Members of the senior civil service are entitled to 30 days per year.

Female Staff

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what percentage of the staff of her Department are women; and what the percentage was in June 1997.

Kim Howells: The current percentage of women within the Department is 48 per cent. compared to 43 per cent. in June 1997.

National Insurance

Tim Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the cost to the tourist industry of the changes in the national insurance regime in the last budget.

Kim Howells: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Ryedale (Mr. Greenway) on 10 May 2002, Official Report, column 385W.

All Our Futures: Creativity, Culture and Education

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to implement the recommendations of the report, All Our Futures: Creativity, Culture and Education; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: The National Advisory Committee on Creative and Cultural Education reported jointly to the Secretaries of State for Culture, Media and Sport and Education and Employment in 1999 via the report All Our Futures. The report contained 59 detailed recommendations for action by a range of bodies including Government, schools and higher education institutions. My Department has worked closely with the Department for Education and Skills, and external partners, to implement the recommendations.
	Some of the main steps taken so far include funding of 270 million for the introduction of the Music Standards Fund to protect and expand LEA music services; the establishment of Artsmark, a national awards scheme now in its second year which recognises schools which offer a wide range of arts provision; and the recent joint announcement of 130 million for the Space for Sport and Arts programme which will fund almost 300 primary schools nationwide to modernise or build new multi-use halls and sports facilities and new music and arts studios.
	Other major initiatives in progress include the development of 16 Creative Partnerships pilots, with the aim of building long-term, sustainable relationships between creative professionals and schools. The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority is undertaking a project focusing on pupils' creativity across the curriculum which will produce guidance for schools on ways to promote pupils' creativity.
	Our Green Paper Culture and Creativitythe Next Ten Years, published in March 2001, set out our overall vision for culture and creativity, and further underlined the importance we place on creativity and culture in education.

Broadband

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will publish her assessment of the benefits of access to broadband services for industries within her remit; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: The Government believe that the rapid roll-out and adoption of broadband across the UK is important to both their social and economic objectives. The Government and other organisations have conducted studies of the application of information and communication technology and e-commerce to business and small and medium enterprises which suggest that broadband has a range of benefits and that industries stand to gain from productivity improvements. However, an assessment of the specific benefits to each industry within DCMS' remit could be undertaken only at disproportionate cost.

Regional Television

Alex Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to take action to require the ITC to ensure that ITV companies in Scotland do not decrease the number of hours of regional programmes which they broadcast annually.

Kim Howells: holding answer 5 July 2002
	On 27 May the Independent Television Commission (ITC) published the Charter for Broadcasting in the Nations and Regions, an agreement with the ITV companies to secure a sustainable future for regional programming. The charter includes commitments to guarantee out of London investment, improve scheduling of regional programming and strengthen local accountability. It also involves a greater standardisation of regional programme hours, and therefore some reduction in output that is less well funded and shown at the least accessible times. The ITC considers that the emphasis should be on quality rather than quantity and that the public interest is best served by better funded, more accessible programming. The Department has no plans to intervene.

Television Cricket

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will take measures to require future Ashes cricket series in Australia to be available on terrestrial television.

Kim Howells: holding answer 5 July 2002
	The Government only intervene in the sports broadcasting market to ensure that all television licence holders have free-to-air access (on the BBC, the ITV Network or Channel 4) to those sporting occasions which are considered to have true national resonance. These events are listed under Part IV of the Broadcasting Act 1996. The list was revised and extended in 1998 and is kept under review.
	Cricket test matches played in England and the final, semi-finals and matches involving Home Nations teams in the Cricket World cup are listed. Test matches played overseas are not listed because, while of great interest to cricket fans, they do not strike a chord with the general viewer in the same way as events which are listed.

Hockey

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she last attended a hockey match in her official capacity.

Tessa Jowell: I have not yet attended a hockey match in an official capacity, although I did attend an elite training session for hockey goalkeepers at the Summer Performance Camp at Loughborough University on 10 July 2001.

Hockey

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the levels of participation in hockey by persons from ethnic minority backgrounds; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: The following figures show participation in hockey by ethnic breakdown.
	Figures only cover affiliated clubs and are taken from an audit by the English Hockey Association.
	Further breakdown by age would be available on request.
	
		
			   Men Women 
		
		
			 White 29,701 22,412 
			 Mixed 742 285 
			 Asian/Asian British 1,414 149 
			 Black/Black British 136 205 
			 Chinese/Other 132 76 
			  
			 Total 32,125 23,127

Hockey

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to encourage the provision of astroturf hockey pitches.

Richard Caborn: The Government recognise the value that synthetic turf pitches have in improving the opportunities to take part in a variety of outdoor sports, including hockey.
	The Government support the provision of sport and leisure facilities, including astroturf hockey pitches, through various means including funding from the Sports Lottery Fund, administered by Sport England. The provision of astroturf hockey pitches is a matter for local authorities to consider, in the light of local needs and the appropriate mixture of public and private provision.
	Sport England has worked with the English Hockey Association in the preparation of a facilities strategy. This strategy deals with the provision of new artificial pitches with particular reference to water-based pitches for performance hockey. The strategy makes recommendations for the number of artificial turf pitches by population base and identifies three categories of artificial pitch provision: regional academies; satellite centres; and premier club centres.

TRANSPORT

Trackside Debris

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what action he has taken in respect of reports of sleepers and other debris being left by contractors beside the main east coast railway line in Arlesey, Bedfordshire; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will raise with the Chief Executive of Railtrack at a meeting in the near future the issue of contractors' debris beside railway lines; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what information he has received from the Chief Executive of Railtrack about an initiative designed to ensure contractors clear debris from areas surrounding railway tracks whilst work is in progress; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: holding answer 21 May 2002
	I understand that Railtrack have in hand a national programme to ensure that the lineside is clear from surplus engineering material by October 2002; and that systems are in place by the following month to prevent future build-up of such material.

Home Zones

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which local authorities included proposals for home zones in their annual progress reports 2001 finance forms; how many were proposed in each case; what the total length of these roads is; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The table shows the information provided within the local transport plan Annual Progress Reports submitted in August 2001 of those English authorities outside London which included proposals for the designation of areas as home zones. Length of road within each proposal is not recorded centrally.
	
		
			 Authority 200102 200203 200304 200405 200506 
		
		
			 Bath and North East Somerset 2 3 3 3 3 
			 Birmingham 0 2 2 1 2 
			 Blackburn 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Blackpool 0 1 0 0 1 
			 Bolton 0 0 1 1 1 
			 Bournemouth 2 2 2 2 2 
			 Brighton 0 0 1 1 1 
			 Bristol 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Darlington 0 0 1 1 1 
			 Derby 0 0 1 2 3 
			 Devon 1 4 5 3 4 
			 Dorset 0 0 1 1 1 
			 Durham 30 30 30 30 30 
			 Gateshead 0 1 0 0 0 
			 Gloucestershire 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Hampshire 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Hull 0 1 2 2 2 
			 Isle of Wight 1 2 2 2 2 
			 Kent 0 1 1 1 1 
			 Knowsley 0 1 1 1 1 
			 Leeds 1 0 1 1 1 
			 Leicestershire 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Lincolnshire 0 1 2 1 1 
			 Liverpool 1 2 2 3 3 
			 Luton 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Manchester 1 4 4 4 5 
			 Medway 0 0 1 1 1 
			 North Lincolnshire 0 1 1 1 1 
			 North Tyneside 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Newcastle 0 0 1 1 1 
			 Northumberland 0 2 1 1 1 
			 Nottingham 2 2 2 2 2 
			 Nottinghamshire 2 0 3 4 4 
			 Oldham 2 1 1 1 1 
			 Oxfordshire 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Peterborough 1 0 0 0 0 
			 Plymouth 0 1 0 0 0 
			 Poole 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Portsmouth 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Rutland 1 1 1 1 1 
			 South Tyneside 0 1 1 1 2 
			 Salford 0 0 1 1 1 
			 Sefton 0 1 1 1 1 
			 Sheffield 1 0 0 0 0 
			 Shropshire 2 2 2 2 2 
			 Solihull 0 0 2 3 4 
			 St Helens 1 1 1 0 1 
			 Stockport 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Stoke on Trent 0 0 1 0 1 
			 Suffolk 0 1 2 1 1 
			 Surrey 1 3 5 5 5 
			 Telford and Wrekin 0 0 1 1 1 
			 Thurrock 0 1 1 2 2 
			 Trafford 0 0 1 1 1 
			 West Sussex 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Warrington 0 0 1 1 1 
			 Warwickshire 1 2 3 4 5 
			 Windsor and Maidenheaad 1 0 0 0 0 
			 Wolverhampton 1 2 2 3 3 
			 York 1 3 3 3 3 
		
	
	Source:
	LTP Annual Progress Report 2001

10-Year Plan

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he plans to publish revisions to the 10 year plan for transport.

David Jamieson: I refer the hon. Member to the Secretary of State for Transport' oral answer to the hon. Member for Christchurch (Mr. Chope) on Tuesday 2 July 2002, Official Report, columns 7778.

Train Punctuality

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many trains of each train operating company arrived late by (a) more than five minutes and (b) more than 10 minutes in each month from November 2001 to June 2002; and how many trains in each train operating company were cancelled in each month from November 2001 to June 2002.

David Jamieson: I refer the hon. Member to the Strategic Rail Authority Publication 'On Track' which contains the rail performance information he seeks. The document is published every six months, the last one on 6 June and was placed in the Libraries of the House.

Funding Guarantees

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what funding guarantees have been given to the SRA by his Department.

David Jamieson: holding answer 2 July 2002
	I refer the hon. Member to the statement about Network Rail made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport on 27 June 2002 Official Report, columns 971973.

Halcrow

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what strategic transport reports he intends to commission from Halcrow; and what fees they will be paid.

David Jamieson: The Department may wish to engage consultants for a wide variety of purposes, including policy development (and implementation), administration, research and development, and the provision of specialist services. I would not want to prejudge who are appointed to undertake such work.

York-Penzance Rail Service

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment he has made of the (a) reliability and (b) punctuality of rail services between York and Penzance.

David Jamieson: Performance figures for each of the train operating companies are published by the Strategic Rail Authority in their quarterly publication National Rail Trends, and in more detail in their six monthly publication On Track. Copies of these publications are placed in the library of the House. The most recent editions of both documents were published on 6 June.

Modes of Transport Statistics

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) car, (b) bus and (c) rail journeys were made in the last 12 months.

David Jamieson: Data from the National Travel Survey on main mode of trip show that, over the period 19982000, residents in Great Britain made on average:
	(a) 640 car trips per person per year (411 as a driver and 228 as a passenger)
	(b) 58 local bus trips per person per year and
	(c) 19 rail trips per person per year (12 by surface rail and 7 by LT Underground).
	Data are not available for single years.

Seat Belts

Gerry Steinberg: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his answer of 1 July 2002, ref 65787, on seat belts, what plans he has to ensure they are used by pupils.

David Jamieson: The law does not require passengers to wear seat belts in the rear seats of coaches but advice in the Highway Code is that they should be worn where available. Unlike the case of drivers of cars, goods vehicles and the smaller minibuses, it would be unreasonable and potentially unsafe for drivers of these larger vehicles also to be responsible for seat belt wearing by passengers under 14 years.

Oral Questions

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many oral questions he has transferred to other Departments in each of the last 18 months.

David Jamieson: Since the Department for Transport was formed on 29 May 2002, no oral questions have been transferred to other Departments.
	Five oral questions were transferred by the former Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, as follows:
	
		
			  Month Number of oral questions transferred 
		
		
			 June 2001 1 
			 December 2001 1 
			 January 2002 1 
			 March 2002 2 
		
	
	Questions are only transferred when it is more appropriate for another Department to answer, and they accept the question.

National Air Traffic Services

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his answer of 25 June to the hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr. Carmichael), Official Report, column 768W, on national air traffic services, what actions with regard to software and equipment have been taken to prevent a recurrence of the problems experienced on 27 March, 10 April and 17 May.

David Jamieson: holding answer 5 July 2002
	Details of the actions taken in response to earlier software and equipment problems at West Drayton and Swanwick are operational matters for NATS.

Bus Services

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many bus services in each metropolitan transport authority area for which his Department pays subsidy have been (a) temporarily and (b) permanently suspended in the last 12 months.

David Jamieson: My Department does not collect information in the form requested.
	All local bus services following a registered route and timetable are eligible to receive grant from the Department in the form of fuel duty rebate. However, in the vast majority of cases (nearly 90 per cent. of total bus provision in the areas of passenger transport authorities) decisions on service provision are for commercial operators.
	In the remaining cases, the service is provided under contract from the passenger transport authority and subsidised by that authority from its own resources. The resources available to authorities are augmented by payments from the Department's rural bus subsidy grant scheme. I understand that only one service supported by a passenger transport authority with funding form this scheme has been withdrawn in the last 12 months.

Bus Services

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures he is taking to increase the take-up of concessionary fares on rural bus services.

David Jamieson: holding answer 4 July 2002
	Our minimum requirement for concessionary fares schemes has, since June 2001, guaranteed at least half-fares for pensioners and disabled people on local buses to the benefit of seven million people overall, some of whom will be travelling in rural areas. This is an improvement on the previous position where 16 mostly rural areas had no concessionary travel scheme at all. From April 2003 the Travel Concessions (Eligibility) Act 2002 will ensure that men aged 6065 will also receive the benefit of concessionary travel. Further, our Rural Bus Subsidy Grant has provided an additional 1,800 services upon which concessionary travel is possible. Many of the innovative schemes supported by our Rural Bus Challenge competition also provide further scope for take-up of concessionary travel.

Baldock Bypass

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the funding of the Baldock bypass and progress on the project.

David Jamieson: Hertford county council originally proposed that the Baldock bypass should be funded through the Private Finance Initiative. However, following a re-evaluation of the scheme, Hertfordshire concluded that the Baldock bypass should be procured through conventional funding. They agreed to provide revised cost estimates in support of this view.
	We have been in discussions with Hertfordshire to determine what procurement would represent value for money for this scheme and are currently awaiting information from Hertfordshire. When this information is received I hope to be in a position to make a decision about how the Baldock bypass will be funded.

John Cordle

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether (a) he and (b) his Ministers spoke to a constituent, Mr. John Cordle of Salisbury, on 18 June.

David Jamieson: No.

Northern Line

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people on average (a) entered and (b) left the Northern Line in each 15 minute period of a working day for each station on the Northern Line in the most recent period for which figures are available.

David Jamieson: Detailed in-year operational information of this nature is a matter for London Underground.

Northern Line

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the percentage of people, taking the Northern line (a) south from Euston and (b) north from Kennington, who travelled on the (i) Charing Cross branch and (ii) Bank branch in the most recent period for which figures are available.

David Jamieson: None, detailed operational information of this nature is a matter for London Underground.

London Underground

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the length of train, in numbers of carriages, that each station on the London Underground Network (a) can accommodate and (b) is most frequently served by.

David Jamieson: I refer to the answer which my right hon. Friend the Minister for Transport (Mr. Spellar) gave to the hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Mr. Brake) on 15 January 2002, Official Report, column 196W.

London Underground

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the (a) crowded and (b) very crowded links, as defined by London Underground, as at 1 July of each of the last eight years, on the London Underground network.

David Jamieson: Detailed operational information of this nature is a matter for London Underground who inform me, furthermore, that it could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

London Underground

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many times each day (a) a station and (b) a platform, on the London Underground network has been temporarily closed owing to overcrowding in the most recent period for which figures are available.

David Jamieson: Detailed operational information of this nature is a matter for London Underground.

Network Rail

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his answer of 25 June 2002, Official Report, column 774W, on Network Rail, if he will list the (a) funders and (b) customers to whom he refers; and if he will provide details of the obligations in each case.

David Jamieson: The Strategic Rail Authority would fund Network Rail by means of future grants and will provide back-stop credit facilities as set out in the statement made to the House by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on 27 June 2002, Official Report, columns 971989, and in the minutes, mentioned in the statement, which have been laid before the House. In addition to the SRA, Network Rail would have a number of commercial funders. Network Rail's customers would be the train and freight operating companies. Their obligations would be in accordance with the track and station access agreements for each operating company. These agreements are available from the office of the rail regulator.

Network Rail

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, under the Network Rail proposal, what call there is on Railtrack Group PLC under the outstanding guarantees in respect of (a) the European Investment Bank facilities made available to Railtrack PLC and (b) the bank facilities which have been made available to London and Continental Railways Limited in connection with the CTRL.

David Jamieson: holding answer 2 July 2002
	None.

Network Rail

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the incentive arrangements with regard to Network Rail and possible enhancement projects; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: holding answer 2 July 2002
	Network Rail will prepare and publish an incentive plan annually. The plan will cover both the short and the long run delivery of the business and be focused on delivery of the business plan, including enhancement projects, and on meeting licence and contractual obligations.

Network Rail

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the mechanism by which members of Network Rail will be held accountable by (a) customers, (b) the general public, (c) the Executive and (d) Parliament.

David Jamieson: holding answer 2 July 2002
	Network Rail would be accountable via its network licence and contractual obligations. Its customers could ensure that the company meets its contractual obligations to them; the Rail Regulator would continue to monitor and enforce delivery against the network licence; and the Strategic Rail Authority's strategic plan will set the framework within which the company would deliver and particularly within which enhancements will be taken forward.
	The strategic plan is laid before Parliament. The SRA would also appoint a non-executive director to the Network Rail board.

Network Rail

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the mechanism for selecting the members of the nominating committee for Network Rail members;
	(2)  by what mechanism people and groups will be appointed to be members of Network Rail; how many will be appointed; and on what date.

David Jamieson: holding answer 2 July 2002
	Network Rail would have three categories of members: industry membersrailway licence holders; public interest membersdrawn from the community at large, with a clear interest in the railway and the ability to make a genuine contribution; and the SRA membernominated by the Strategic Rail Authority. Network Rail expects there to be around 100 members in total.
	Network Rail intends to recruit public interest members by invitation and through advertisement and will appoint a membership selection panel (MSP), with an independent majority, to consider applications against a membership policy. The board would appoint public interest members on the recommendation of the MSP. The detail and timing of these arrangements are matters for Network Rail to determine.

Railtrack

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what date he expects to make an application to the court for the discharge of the Railtrack administration order; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: holding answer 2 July 2002
	I refer the hon. Member the statement about Network Rail made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport on 27 June 2002, Official Report, columns 97173.

Railtrack

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what basis Railtrack Group will waive its claims for compensation against Her Majesty's Government, the Secretary of State, his Department and others in respect of the making of the administration order; if he will place copies of related documentation in the Library; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: holding answer 2 July 2002
	This is a matter for Railtrack Group plc. Their reasoning is explained in the press release they issued on 27 June 2002.

Railtrack

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport under the administration order, whether Railtrack Group will be permitted to carry out the planned rollover of chargeable gains arising in the year, in connection with certain contingent tax liabilities arising from transactions entered into before 7 October 2001, for which no provision has been made; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: holding answer 2 July 2002
	This is a matter for Network Rail, Railtrack Group and the administrators of Railtrack plc.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Industrial Support

Tony Colman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what industrial support resources, including staff and direct financial investment, are invested in the (a) automotive, (b) environmental industry, (c) construction, (d) metals, (e) aerospace, (f) chemicals and (g) water industrial sectors.

Patricia Hewitt: The DTI's role is to work with business, employees and consumers to drive up UK productivity and competitiveness. Our planned expenditure on resources for the promotion of enterprise, innovation and increased productivity is 1.23 billion for 200203, as set out in Table 2, Annex A, of the Trade and Industry Expenditure Plans Report 2002, Cm 5416. This will include advice and support for the sectors in question and the development of policy to promote the success of those sectors. The detailed information requested cannot be provided without incurring a disproportionate cost.

Departmental Waste

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of waste produced in her Department was (a) recycled, (b) composted and (c) re-used, broken down into (i) paper, (ii) plastics, (iii) aluminium cans and (iv) other, in each year since 1997; what plans there are to increase the proportions; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: Up to June 2002 the DTI used a variety of waste contractors, who operated their own waste minimisation techniques, including minimisation at source, re-use, recycling and energy recovery. An accurate figure for the proportion of waste recycled, composted, reused and segregated from 1997 to date could be obtained only at disproportionate expense. However, I attach a high importance to monitoring and improving on current waste outputs, and a total waste management tender has been developed and has taken effect from July 1 2002. The successful contractor will be required to report on the percentage of waste streams that are recovered, while ensuring that the following targets are achieved:
	
		
			   Recovery target (As a percentage of waste handled) Recycling/ composting target (As a percentage of waste recovered) 
		
		
			 200203 60 45 
			 200304 70 55 
			 200405 80 65 
		
	
	Initially the targets will be achieved through paper and card recycling but the tender specification requires the contractor to investigate innovative techniques for recovering other waste streams, including metals, plastics and glass.

General Agreement on Trade in Services

Julia Drown: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the European Union's negotiating demands for the General Agreement on Trade in Services, indicating which ones her Department (a) supports and (b) does not support.

Patricia Hewitt: In line with the end-June benchmark date set in the WTO Doha ministerial declaration for the exchange of initial requests between WTO members for liberalisation under the current General Agreement on Trade in Services negotiations, the European Community's requests were finalised on 28 June following consultation between the Commission and member states. They are being transmitted this week to individual WTO members to whom they are addressed.
	In the case of the EC's major trading partners, both developed and developing countries, requests are made in most services sectors. The main exceptions are health, education (with the exception of the US, to whom requests are made in the area of privately funded higher education services) and audio-visual services.
	As regards developing countries, requests are made in line with their levels of development. In the case of the least developed countries, requests are in the main limited to three to five sectors, with the sectors identified being those where liberalisation is most likely to contribute to developmentprimarily business, financial, telecommunications and transport services.
	Throughout the requests, the EC emphasises that it is not seeking the dismantling of public services or the privatisation of state owned companies. The requests also make clear that the EC recognises the importance of liberalisation being underpinned by domestic regulatory frameworks designed to ensure the achievement of public policy objectives.
	The requests are not demands. They are an opening basis for negotiations. Nor, as WTO Director-General Mike Moore has confirmed last week, do requests constitute agreements by WTO members to include such sectors as part of their commitments.

Regional Development Agencies

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the members of each of the regional development agencies, together with any declared party political affiliation.

Patricia Hewitt: The names of the board members of each of the eight English regional development agencies outside London, together with any political affiliations declared in response to the political activity questionnaire required by the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA) are as follows:
	
		
			  Surname  First name Declared political activity 
		
		
			  Advantage West Midlands 
			 Stephenson Alex None 
			 Barnes Richard None 
			 Bhattacharyya Kumar None 
			 Bore Albert Labour 
			 Davis Sue Labour 
			 Harris Anthony None 
			 Holmes Bill Labour 
			 Kaur Stubbs Sukhvinder None 
			 King Christine None 
			 Moore Isabella None 
			 Price Norman None 
			 Sealey Tony None 
			 Sparks David Labour 
			 Tilsley Paul Liberal Democrat 
			 Woods-Scawen Brian None 
			
			  East of England Development Agency 
			 Watts Vincent None 
			 Ali Roger None 
			 Bagnall Ruth Labour 
			 Brinton Sal Liberal Democrat 
			 Cereste Marco None 
			 Cherry Alan None 
			 Grant Greg Labour 
			 Martin Peter Conservative 
			 Murray Leo None 
			 Paveley Chris None 
			 Powell Richard None 
			 Reyner Neville None 
			 Shariff Yasmin None 
			 Skinner Marie None 
			   
			  East Midlands Development Agency 
			 Mapp Derek None 
			 Bilgan Kashmir Labour 
			 Bradford Jane None 
			 Carr Bryan None 
			 Chapman Graham Labour 
			 Gadsby Peter None 
			 Gardner Gill Liberal Democrat 
			 Gemmell Samantha None 
			 McLeod Jonathan Labour 
			 Morgan-Webb Patricia None 
			 Patel Rita Labour 
			 Ramsden Peter Labour 
			 Scarborough Andrew Labour 
			 Whittaker Ron None 
			 Wood Christine None 
			   
			  North West Development Agency 
			 Gray Bryan None 
			 Chamberlain Neville None 
			 Doyle Michael Labour 
			 Dunning John None 
			 Goodey Felicity None 
			 Harris Martin None 
			 Jeanes Clive None 
			 Lane Pauleen Labour 
			 Leese Richard Labour 
			 Manning Alan Labour 
			 Mendoros Dennis None 
			 Reade Kath Labour 
			 Ruia Anil Conservative 
			 Smith Brenda None 
			 Storey Michael Liberal Democrat 
			   
			  One Northeast 
			 Bridge John None 
			 Arkley Alistair None 
			 Cantle-Jones Timothy None 
			 Curran Kevin Labour 
			 Dennis Barbara None 
			 Edwards Christopher None 
			 Fisher Jackie None 
			 Hodgson Geoff None 
			 Hughes Philip Independent 
			 Maudslay Richard None 
			 Nolan Jane None 
			 Stringfellow Rita Labour 
			 Walsh David Labour 
			 Williams John Labour 
			 Wilson Susan None 
			 South East of England Development Agency 
			 Willett Allan None 
			 Bodfish Ken Labour 
			 Brighouse Elizabeth Labour 
			 Booth Clive Labour 
			 Brathwaite James Labour 
			 Camfield Barry Labour 
			 Douglas Robert None 
			 Kong Janis None 
			 McAnally Mary None 
			 Oliver Kit Conservative 
			 Read Peter None 
			 Thornber Thomas (Kenneth) Conservative 
			 Ward Sarah Liberal Democrat 
			 Williams Caroline None 
			 Wilson Kevin Labour 
			
			  South West of England Regional Development Agency 
			 Lickiss Michael None 
			 Ansari Doris Liberal Democrat 
			 Buckland Nicholas None 
			 Chalke Peter Conservative 
			 Costley Nigel Labour 
			 Holland Helen Labour 
			 Kemp Brian None 
			 Leece Michael None 
			 Morris Alfred None 
			 Nicholl Robin Labour 
			 Pope Jeremy None 
			 Porritt Jonathan Green Party 
			 Skellett Colin None 
			   
			  Yorkshire Forward 
			 Hall Graham None 
			 Ashcroft John None 
			 Barker Muriel Labour 
			 Bosomworth Eileen Conservative 
			 Coburn Jeanne None 
			 Cummins Julian Liberal Democrat 
			 Gregory Richard None 
			 Greenwood Brian None 
			 Haskins Christopher Labour 
			 Houghton Stephen Labour 
			 Jagger Paul Labour 
			 King Christopher None 
			 Malik Adeeba None 
			 Pinnock Kathryn Liberal Democrat 
			 Warhurst Pamela Labour 
		
	
	The OCPA declaration covers political activities undertaken during the previous five years, including the name of the party or body for which the board member has been active. Political activities are defined by OCPA as follows:
	obtained office as a local councillor, MP, MEP etc;
	stood as a candidate for one of the above offices;
	spoken on behalf of a party or candidate;
	acted as a political agent;
	held office such as chair, treasurer or secretary of a local branch of a party;
	canvassed on behalf of a party or helped at elections;
	undertaken any other political activity which the applicant considers relevant;
	made a recordable donation to a political party (the requirement for publishing a register of recordable donations, as defined under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, became effective from 16 February 2001).
	No other records are kept of political activities by board members.

Military Export Licences

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what deliveries of equipment on the military and dual-use lists have been made to (a) India, (b) Pakistan and (c) Israel in each month since September 2001; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: I refer the right hon. and learned Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Meirionnydd Nant Conwy (Mr. Llwyd) on 18 March 2002, Official Report, column 54W.

Military Export Licences

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what factors the Government take into account when deciding whether to issue (a) a Standard Individual Export Licence and (b) an Open Individual Export Licence; and if she will make a statement.

Nigel Griffiths: All relevant export licence applications, whether for Standard Individual Export Licences (SIEL) or Open Individual Export Licences (OIEL), are considered on a case by case basis against the consolidated EU and national arms export licensing criteria. I refer the right hon. and learned Member to the reply from the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Neath (Peter Hain), to right hon. Friend the Member for Neath (Peter Hain), to my hon. Friend the Member for Crawley (Laura Moffatt) on 26 October 2000, Official Report, columns 199203W.
	In assessing applications for OIELs, the Government considers whether an OIEL would provide for sufficient control in relation to the goods and countries or end users concerned. If not, SIEL applications will be invited instead. Furthermore, OIELs will normally only be granted to exporters with a proven track record of applications for SIELs, and where the particular nature of their business makes the use of SIELs inappropriate or inefficient.

Waste Disposal

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the disposal of (a) high level, (b) intermediate level and (c) liquid form waste.

Michael Meacher: I have been asked to reply.
	There is currently no long-term management policy for either high level or intermediate level radioactive waste. Both high and intermediate level wastes are currently stored safely on licensed sites and are subject to strict regulatory control by the Health and Safety Executive's nuclear installations inspectorate. Any discharges relating to the storage of waste are similarly regulated by the Environment Agency. Wastes in liquid form may be high, intermediate or low level. Low level liquid wastes are discharged from a number of sites throughout the country under authorisations granted by the Environment Agency under the Radioactive Substances Act 1993.
	The Department and the devolved Administrations are working towards finding suitable management solutions for long-lived radioactive waste which have full public support. We recently held a public consultation on the matter, and will be announcing both the results and the next stages of the policy making process very shortly.

Arms Exports

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps her Department has taken to minimise the risk of UK arms exports being diverted from the stated end-use or end-user in Pakistan.

Mike O'Brien: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government focus their efforts on assessment of potential end-use at the export licensing stage, including where needed through checks made by our posts overseas. Carrying out effective risk assessment on end-users before making the export licensing decision is the surest way of preventing arms from falling into the wrong hands. Nevertheless, the Government remain committed to carrying out end-use monitoring in those circumstances where this will genuinely add value to our efforts to minimise the risk of misuse and diversion and where such monitoring is practicable. Our overseas posts have standing instructions to report on allegations of misuse of any UK-origin defence equipment.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Health and Safety Standards

Don Foster: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what statutory obligations are in force for inspection of health and safety standards in (a) residential homes, (b) boarding schools and (c) university halls of residence; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: I have been asked to reply.
	The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA) applies to residential homes, boarding schools and university halls of residence. HSWA sets out general health and safety duties which employers, the self-employed and people in control of premises have towards their employees, and others who could be affected by the work activities. It is the 'umbrella' legislation under which other, more specific, health and safety regulations are made. The Health and Safety (Enforcing Authority) Regulations 1998 allocate inspection responsibility for different types of undertakings to either the Health and Safety Executive or to the Local Authority. Inspectors are appointed under Section 19 of HSWA to carry out inspection and enforcement in relation to health and safety.

Nuclear Power

Tam Dalyell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, pursuant to his oral answer of 22 May 2002, Official Report, column 282, what progress has been made with his consultations about the future of nuclear power.

John Prescott: Responsibility for the consultation on nuclear energy lies with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. The consultation covers the key issues for Energy Policy including the role of nuclear. The Government published a consultation document on 14 May, arranged a debate on 20 June in the House of Commons and workshops have been arranged to discuss key issues with energy stakeholders.

Out-of-town Shopping Centres

Keith Vaz: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many out of town shopping centres he has visited in an official capacity since 1 January.

Christopher Leslie: None in an official capacity.

Local Authority Performance

Eric Pickles: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the future of Best Value as a means of assessing the performance of local authorities;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the relationship between the role of Best Value assessments in local authorities and the new comprehensive performance assessment; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Raynsford: Comprehensive Performance Assessments bring together different judgments about a local authority's performance, many of which arise from audits and inspections carried out under the best value powers in the Local Government Act 1999. Such assessments will be used to determine, in consultation with individual councils, the timing and content of subsequent audit and inspection activity. In the case of good performing authorities, we anticipate reduced levels of inspection from next year. All authorities can expect a more proportionate risk based programme of both audit and inspection, and better co-ordination across the range of their functions.

Local Authority Performance

Eric Pickles: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the cost to local authorities of complying with the comprehensive performance assessment system; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Raynsford: Comprehensive Performance Assessments make significant use of existing performance information from the following sources:
	inspections;
	audit reports;
	performance indicator data;
	other central Government assessment data; together with a corporate governance assessment of the authority as a whole, which includes an element of self assessment.
	Additional inspection fieldwork is kept to the minimum necessary to provide fair and robust judgments. The Audit Commission will undertake the majority of this fieldwork by redirecting their scheduled inspection activities. Because the fieldwork will replace some, or all, of the planned inspection activity for the period up to December 2002, it will be achieved within the existing fee envelope for local councils.

Social Exclusion Unit

Oliver Heald: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, pursuant to his answer of 14 February 2002, Official Report, column 555W, on the Social Exclusion Unit, what progress has been made in respect of the Social Exclusion Unit's work on (a) mental health issues and prisoners, (b) mental health provision for cared for children and (c) elderly persons' mental health needs to get out of the house; and if he will publish reports in respect of the work.

John Prescott: (a) The Social Exclusion Unit's report on reducing re-offending by ex-prisoners was published on 1 July 2002 and copies of the report are in the Libraries of both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
	The report contains a detailed analysis of the mental health issues facing prisoners. It recommends that the Government develop and implement a national rehabilitation strategy, which should pull together the contributions of all relevant Government Departments. As part of this strategy, the report recommends improvements to key reception and release procedures in prison, and a 'Going Straight Contract', which would deliver improvements in mental health outcomes, particularly in how they join up with many of the other factors affecting prisoners. An action plan setting out the Government's response to the report will be published later this year.
	(b) The Social Exclusion Unit has consulted widely on all the factors impacting on the educational attainment of children in care. Mental health has been raised as an important issue, especially with regard to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). The project will be published later this year.
	(c) In May 2002 the Social Exclusion Unit published its interim report on transport and social exclusion entitled Making the Connections. The report is available on the Unit's website and in the Libraries of both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
	The interim report highlights that one third of older people say that there are one or more activities that they would like to be able to do more often; and that half of these involved family and other social visits. This suggests a significant degree of social isolation, which may have an impact on mental health.
	The Social Exclusion Unit will publish its final report on transport and social exclusion later this year.

Regulatory Impact Unit

Vincent Cable: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many members of his Department have been employed in its regulatory impact unit in the past five years; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: The new Departmental Regulatory Impact Unit was established in October 2001 and it works for both the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Department for Transport.
	Figures for earlier years are not comparable with the current baseline due to the different policy responsibilities. The resource position for 19972001 were parts of a Grade 7, SEO, EO and AO.
	199798 (1 April 1997 to 31 March 1998) = 4
	199899 (1 April 199 to 31 March 1999) = 4
	19992000 (1 April 1999 to 31 March 2000) = 4
	200001 (1 April 2000 to 31 March 2001) = 4
	200102 (1 April 2001 to 31 March 2002) = 4 staff, 2 full time, 2 job share.
	It is the job of Departmental Regulatory Impact Units to establish and promote the principles of good regulation in their Departments. The staff in each unit work closely with the officials responsible for developing policies within their Department and the Regulatory Impact Unit within the Cabinet Office. They focus on those regulations that impact on business, charities, the voluntary sector and public sector front line service deliverers.

Local Strategic Partnership, Walsall

David Winnick: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on accreditation of the local strategic partnership in Walsall.

Christopher Leslie: Following the decision last February that Walsall's LSP had made insufficient progress to warrant accreditation the partnership's development has been closely monitored. The role of stakeholders in the health, education, police, voluntary and private sectors has been crucial in driving development towards a viable structure and constitution for the partnership. The LSP is now ready to fulfil an important leadership role in the borough, and has now received its accreditation.

Departmental Energy Use

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the estimated (a) level and (b) cost of energy use in his Department and associated agencies was in each year since 1997; what proportion of energy was generated from renewable sources; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: My Department was formed on 29 May. For details of energy consumption and cost for the former Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for Rural Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff, South and Penarth (Alun Michael), to the hon. Member for Hazel Grove on 3 July 2002, Official Report, column 384W.
	Procurement of electricity from renewable sources in my Department began in October 2000 and from April 2002 some 40 per cent. of the Departments' total electricity usage was from a renewable source.

Ministerial Visits

Tim Collins: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister on how many occasions during the last 12 months an official photographer has accompanied him on official visits (a) overseas and (b) within the UK; what (i) travel expenses, (ii) costs of equipment and processing, (iii) staff payment and (iv) other costs were incurred on each occasion; what publications official photographs have appeared in during the last 12 months and what terms and conditions were attached to the publication of such photographs; and whether photographs taken on official visits are available for use in non-governmental literature.

John Prescott: In the last 12 months the Deputy Prime Minister has not been accompanied by an official photographer on any visit, whether in the UK or overseas.

Homelessness

Colin Breed: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what proportion of rural local authorities have used bed and breakfast accommodation to house young people for each of the last 10 years, broken down by region;
	(2)  what proportion of rural districts had emergency accommodation for young people in each of the last 10 years, broken down by region;
	(3)  what measures he is taking to improve the recording of homelessness in rural areas.

Tony McNulty: Detailed information on emergency accommodation and use of bed and breakfast accommodation for young people in rural districts is not collected centrally, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The new Homelessness Act 2002 will bring about radical change in the way that central and local government, and all other partners, work together to tackle homelessness in all parts of the country including rural areas. For the first time ever, local authorities will be required to carry out a review and develop a strategy for their area that prevents homelessness and provides solutions for people who are, or who may become, homeless. More specifically, the reviews required by the Homelessness Act will require authorities to estimate current and likely future levels of homelessness and audit provision for all forms of homelessness among young people.
	In addition, the quarterly P1E return on which local authorities report activity under the homelessness legislation has been expanded to collect information about the average length of time spent by households in B and B hotels, and hostel style accommodation.
	With effect from April 2002, the form has been further revised, both to seek finer detail about instances of harassment and violence leading to home loss and in anticipation of additional priority need categories proposed in the Homelessness (Priority Need for Accommodation) Order 2002 which, subject to parliamentary approval, should come into effect at the end of July.

Grant Distribution

Paul Clark: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will consult on reform of the system used to distribute grant to English local authorities; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Raynsford: I am pleased to announce that we are today issuing a consultation document covering reform of the system we use to distribute grant to English local authorities. The consultation will run for 12 weeks over the summer. I have placed copies of the document in the Library of the House. It is being sent to all local authorities, as well as other stakeholders, and is available via the internet.
	The system covers key services including education, personal social services, police, fire and a wider range of other responsibilities. It accounts for distribution of over 85 per cent. of the resources government provides for those services, currently about 36 billion per year. Its importance to local government, other stakeholders and public service delivery across the country means that we want a full and open public consultation on the new system.
	The consultation document sets out the Government's broad objectives for the reform. Responses to the 2000 Local Government Finance Green Paper showed that a big majority of the local government respondents wanted the new system to continue to be based on formulae. The Government announced in the 2001 Local Government White Paper Strong Local LeadershipQuality Public Services that we agreed. We want new formulae that are fairer, simpler; more intelligible and more stable.
	We are concerned to make sure that the new system is more easily understood that the old one. It is important to improve transparency and accountability. Clearly, it will never be possible to achieve a very simple system; the complexity of the issues it seeks to address see to that. The extremely technical nature of the issues means that there is frequently no clear-cut optimum solution. But we believe it is possible to make improvements.
	In considering how to reflect local authorities' relative needs and circumstances, a range of factors have to be taken into account. Three elements seem fundamental:
	1. a basic amount per head of population (or other relevant unit cost);
	2. an appropriate emphasis on the need to tackle deprivation; and
	3. the variation in pay costs between different areas of the country.
	Because deprivation and pay components are core drivers of the costs authorities face in most areas and the problems the system will need to address, we are particularly keen to see them separately identified in formulae. However, that is not to say that other components (for example sparsity) are unimportant. Indeed, they may be a key consideration in particular instances. They will be clearly identified where they form part of a formula.
	The document sets out options for the various components. These options are detailed to the level of showing the effects on each relevant local authority, comparing against the baseline of 200203. This will enable authorities and other interested parties to form views about the desirability of each option.
	However, these figures are not those that will appear in the 200304 local government finance settlement later this year. They will differ both because of changes in the overall funding totals (as a result of the spending review) and as a result of changes to data such as population that will not be available until the autumn. Waiting until that information is available would severely restrict the time available for consultation and in any case would not improve the consultation because we want responses to be about the system and the formulae, rather than on the basis of yearly variations in data. So the options are presented in terms of changes from the 200203 local government finance settlement.
	We will not necessarily limit ourselves to building the new system from the choices specifically consulted upon here. It is likely that other options will be put forward in response to this consultation, and we will not exclude those before taking decisions. Our conclusions arising from the consultation and further consideration of options will be incorporated in the provisional settlement for 200304 that will be published at the usual time, towards the end of the year. Following a further period of consultation, final decisions will be announced in early 2003 in time to take effect in the 200304 financial year.
	This is a difficult and important issue. The Government recognise that pragmatic decisions will be needed to produce a workable system, and the complexity and variety of the pressures that are put upon the system from all sides means that it will not be possible for all authorities to get what they want from this process. So no authority should feel that it is guaranteed to get a bigger share of the fixed amount of resources the system can distribute. But the Government are seeking a fairer distribution of resources which takes account of today's pressures on local government and the particular needs of areas of deprivation. We will consider all of the views that are put forward, and weigh them up carefully before decisions are taken.

Balfour Beatty

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of the contract between the Government and Balfour Beatty for the refurbishment of 22 Whitehall.

Douglas Alexander: I have been asked to reply.
	As my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister stated to my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent, North (Ms Walley) on 14 May 2002, Official Report, column 567W, an initial report on timber procurement for 22 Whitehall has been received and there will be a report to the House when the report is finalised.

Urban Green Spaces Taskforce

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will respond to the final report of the urban green spaces taskforce; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: We welcome the proposals of the final report, which provide a good basis for preparing our policy on provision and management of urban parks and green spaces as proposed in the urban White Paper [Cm 4911].
	Our responses to a majority of the 52 recommendations of the final report rely on other initiatives which have yet to conclude. These include the current spending review, the cross cutting review on improving the public space, and the revision of planning policy guidance on open space, recreation and sports. We also wish to take advice from the Steering Committee set up by the OPDM to consider specific recommendations from the report.
	We plan to integrate our policy on urban parks and green spaces with our strategy and action plan for improving public spaces. The resulting document will address all the recommendations of the final report and deliver our urban White Paper commitments for long-term improvements to urban green spaces. The strategy will be published in the autumn.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Computers

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures are (a) in place and (b) under discussion in her Department in order to ensure compliance with the WEE Directive.

Michael Meacher: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister for Energy and Construction on 13 June 2002, Official Report, column 1266W.

Packaging Waste

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate her Department has made of the increase in domestic recycling required in order to achieve new packaging and packing waste recycling and recovery targets under discussion in the EU; and what discussions she has had with local authorities in relation to increasing domestic and curbside collection of packaging waste to meet recovery and recycling targets by 2006.

Michael Meacher: The Department worked with the task force of the Advisory Committee on Packaging (ACP) in the production of a report, published in November 2001, which looked at packaging material flows from raw material manufacturer to seller, and at packaging waste flows from point of discard to ultimate disposal or recovery. This report, which is publicly available, also looked at the likely level of packaging waste arising in the household stream and which would increasingly have to be recovered if likely higher targets are to be met.
	New packaging waste recovery targets have not yet been finalised but for the purposes of the estimates in the task force report an overall recycling target of 60 per cent. is assumed to have to be met in 2006. The tonnage needed to meet such a target would be in the region of 5.7 million tonnes and the task force report concludes that as much as 65 per cent. of the additional tonnage required may need to be recovered from the household waste stream.
	A first meeting to discuss future packaging waste recovery from the household waste stream was held last year between officials in my Department, the ACP task force and local authorities. Further meetings are planned.

Holsworthy Biogas Project

John Burnett: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much public money has been spent on the Holsworthy Biogas project; what steps her Department took to ensure that all licensing requirements were in place before public money was spent; what steps her Department took to vet the business plan for this project and when the steps were taken; what assessment she has made of the (a) viability of the business plan and (b) profitability of the project; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 17 June 2002
	1,870,315 of UK public expenditure and 1,924,985 of European funding has been committed to this project, the total project costs for which are 7,700,000. To date, some 1,515,014 of UK public expenditure has been made. The Department routinely assessed all applications for funding under the Objective 5b programme. Such assessment included consideration of the business plan, the environmental impact and the profitability of the project. At the time of assessment and approval of the Holsworthy Biogas project, it was not recognised that restrictions on disposal of waste food would prevent the plant being licensed. However, following the recent risk assessment commissioned by the Government we are reviewing the Animal By-Products legislation with a view to permitting the treatment of catering waste in composting and biogas processes.

Mobile Recycling Plants

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many mobile recycling plants there are in operation in the UK; and what their weekly capacity is.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 18 June 2002
	Two mobile recycling plant licensed by the Environment Agency have been operating in the UK. The capacity of each is approximately 4,000 refrigerators per week. In addition one fixed plant was commissioned this week and will begin operating shortly and a further two are due to be operating within a month. All are for the removal of ozone depleting substances from refrigerator equipment, and the combined capacity of all plant will be 1.2 million units per year.

Kyoto Protocol

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if the Government support the extension of the Kyoto Protocol to cover developing nations.

Michael Meacher: The Government are committed to the principle that developed countries, as the biggest emitters, should take the lead in reducing emissions. We are therefore working to secure ratification and early entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol, under which developed countries take on legally binding emission reduction targets for the period 200812. Developing countries are covered by the Kyoto Protocol. Under its terms, they do not have legally binding greenhouse gas emission targets but must take steps to limit their emissions and to report on their efforts. A number of developing countries have already ratified the Protocol and we hope that as many developing countries as possible will follow that lead. The Government hope that the entry into force of the Protocol will provide the basis on which we can enter into an international dialogue with developed and developing countries (or all countries) on future action to tackle climate change. In due course, all countries that emit significant quantities of greenhouse gases will need to take action if we are to meet the UN Climate Change Convention's objective of stabilising greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a safe level.

Kyoto Protocol

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions the Government have had with (a) US representatives, (b) the IMF, (c) the World bank, (d) the WTO and (e) developing nations regarding emissions reductions and the transfer of clean technologies to developing countries.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 3 July 2002
	The Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs have discussed a wide range of climate change issues with US representatives this year, including emissions reductions and technology transfer to developing countries. Most recently the importance of tackling climate change was discussed at the G8 Heads of Government meeting on 2627 June in Kananaskis, attended by the Prime Minister and President Bush. Other Government Ministers and officials take every opportunity to engage constructively with the US on climate change.
	While the Government have had no recent discussions with the IMF on these issues, we are actively encouraging a substantial and successful third replenishment of the Global Environment Facility, the focus of which includes climate change activities in developing countries.
	The Department for International Development has been working closely with the World bank and a number of other agencies to assess the impact of climate change on poverty.
	Climate change is rarely discussed in the forum of the WTO and the Government have had no discussions with it on the particular issues of emissions reductions and technology transfer.
	Government Ministers and officials regularly discuss these and a range of other climate change related issues with representatives from developing countries. We will continue to work constructively on climate change with our international partners in the run up to the Eighth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in October, in Delhi.

Foot and Mouth

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many veterinary surgeons who were (a) employed by the former Ministry for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, (b) employed by other Government Departments and agencies and (c) in the private sector were used by the Government in their campaign to eradicate the outbreak of foot and mouth disease in 2001.

Margaret Beckett: The number of veterinary surgeons assisting with the eradication of foot and mouth disease was not static throughout the epidemic. The table identifies veterinary resources as at mid April 2001 during the peak period.
	
		Veterinary resources as at mid April 2001
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 (a) MAFF veterinarians 344 
			 (b) Veterinary surgeons employed by other Government Departments and agencies; including foreign Governments 122 
			 (c) Private sector veterinarians(1) 1,169 
		
	
	(1) Relates to temporary veterinary inspectors
	Local veterinary inspectors (LVIs) assisted in terms of licensing and some sero-surveillance work but remained working for their respective practices. These have not been included in the breakdown of figures.

Department-sponsored Organisations

Jonathan Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects to announce the budget allocation for the financial year 1 April 2002 to 31 March 2003 for organisations sponsored by her Department; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The Department operates a system of delegated budgeting. Budgets for 200203 were issued to policy commands during April, for them to allocate as appropriate. Organisations who are sponsored by the Department are part of the delegation process. They are notified of the level of sponsorship once this has been determined.

Camelids

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what the target time is for processing an application for an import licence for camelids from non-EU countries; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  what plans she has to change the licensing procedure for the import of camelids; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: If the application for an import licence is complete and correct and we have up-to-date import conditions in place that have been agreed with the exporting country, we can dispatch a licence within three days. It is, however, more common for us to have to negotiate new or amended import conditions with the veterinary authorities of the exporting country. This can be a slow process and can take several months. For this reason we do not have a target date for such applications.
	The existing licensing procedure will be retained until the European Commission introduces harmonised animal health rules for the importation of camelids into the Community.

Veterinary Surgeons

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is towards the recruitment of veterinary surgeons to replace those retiring from the State Veterinary Service.

Margaret Beckett: We currently have a temporary moratorium on the recruitment of veterinary staff to replace those retiring from the State Veterinary Service. This will be reviewed following further examination of the funding for consequential work arising from FMD, which is presently underway.
	Due consideration will also be given to any relevant recommendations made by the Lessons Learned and Royal Society inquiries.

Veterinary Surgeons

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many veterinary surgeons are employed by the State Veterinary Service; how many such posts are vacant; and how many vets are due to retire from the SVS within the next 12 months.

Margaret Beckett: The total number of veterinary surgeons employed by the State Veterinary Service (SVS) as at 1 April 2002 is 336.8 (full-time equivalent basis).
	The number of vacant veterinary permanent posts was 12.
	It is anticipated that 10 vets will be retiring within the next 12 months.

Veterinary Surgeons

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many veterinary surgeons work for each regional office of her Department.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 1 July 2002
	As at 1 April 2002, the State Veterinary Service (SVS) had five regions comprising of 23 divisional offices. Veterinary staff employed in each region is indicated in the table:
	
		
			 Region Number of staff employed 
		
		
			 East region 58 
			 North region 84 
			 West region 67 
			 Scotland 57 
			 Wales 30

Ungulates

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many ungulates, broken down by species, were imported from non-EU countries into the United Kingdom in each of the past three years; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Beckett: The number of ungulates, broken down by species, imported from non-EU countries into Great Britain (but not including imports into Northern Ireland) for the period 19992001 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Species 1999 2000 2001 
		
		
			 Equine 1,767 1,891 1,732 
			 Alpacas (and other Ruminants) 468 1,194 29 
			 Bovine 1,941 482 45 
			 Caprine 13 0 0 
			 Ovine 8 78 967 
			 Porcine 2 0 0 
			 Rhinocerotidae 1 0 1 
			 Deer 0 3 0 
			 Giraffes 0 3 0 
			 Tapiridae 0 1 0 
		
	
	The figures are provisional and subject to change.

Ungulates

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  when she was advised by the European Commission that in the absence of an approved third country list under Directive 92/65/EC ungulates covered by this directive cannot be legally imported into a Community country;
	(2)  what representations she has made to (a) the European Commission and (b) her counterparts in other member states about the implementation of Directive 92/65/EC;
	(3)  what assessment she has made of the impact of the implementation of EC Directive 92/65/EC on breeders of alpacas and other camelids in the United Kingdom.

Margaret Beckett: The Commission gave a verbal summary of its views at a meeting of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health on 10 April this year. We have not yet received formal notification of any changes to the existing arrangements. We have written to the Commission seeking clarification of their position and have alerted them to the impact a suspension of such imports would have on the UK, not only for the well established trade in alpacas but also for breeding programmes of certain endangered species across the Community. There have been a number of formal and informal discussions in Brussels with the Commission and other member states and the Commission intends to introduce harmonised rules for certain species covered by Directive 92/65/EC.

Cattle (Artificial Insemination)

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average time taken over the last 12 months was to process an application for a bull to be licensed for artificial insemination.

Margaret Beckett: The average time taken over the last 12 months to carry out pre-approval health testing of bulls and issue a licence for artificial insemination was 28 days from receipt of a complete and correct application.

Red Kites and Golden Plovers

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many (a) red kites and (b) golden plovers there were in (i) Scotland, (ii) England and (iii) Wales in each year since 1972.

Michael Meacher: The information requested on red kites from 1972 to 2000 is shown in the table.
	
		
			Number of pairs of red kites  
			 Year  Wales England Scotland 
		
		
			 1972 29   
			 1973 31   
			 1974 33   
			 1975 33   
			 1976 33   
			 1977 35   
			 1978 41   
			 1979 44   
			 1980 43   
			 1981 47   
			 1982 46   
			 1983 47   
			 1984 52   
			 1985 56   
			 1986 58   
			 1987 59   
			 1988 69   
			 Reintroduction initiated   
			 1989 72   
			 1990 85   
			 1991 92 2 0 
			 1992 101 7 2 
			 1993 115 12 8 
			 1994 138 22 11 
			 1995 146 26 17 
			 1996 161 (2)37 22 
			 1997 180 61 27 
			 1998 200 87 30 
			 1999 228 (2)83 39 
			 2000 (2)203 (2)131 (2)39 
		
	
	(2) Information available for Wales in 2000, for England in 1996, 1999 and 2000 and for Scotland in 2000 relates only to numbers of breeding pairs.
	The following table gives information on the golden plover population. Numbers have been monitored only since 1995 and on a GB-wide basis.
	
		Golden plover
		
			 Year Population 
		
		
			 19951996 13,0638 
			 19961997 10,1255 
			 19971998 18,1612 
			 19981999 15,6020 
			 19992000 17,8959

Illegal Waste

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action (a) has recently been taken and (b) is planned by her Department to tackle problems from (i) litter, (ii) flytipping, (iii) abandoned vehicles and (iv) other waste disposed by illegal means; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: Last year I launched three litter initiatives: the 1 million Pathfinder Programme, which calls upon local authorities to come up with innovative ways of tackling litter; the development of a voluntary code of best environmental practice for the fast food industry; and a review of the litter legislation to see what is, and what is not working. The results of Pathfinder will be available this time next year; the fast food code of practice is currently being drafted; and the litter legislative review has been subsumed into the Government's public space cross-cutting review, which will report this autumn.
	The responsibility for enforcing the legislation on fly tipping rests with the Environment Agency and local authorities. The Department fully supports the work and actions taken by these bodies in order to tackle the problem, including prosecutions where appropriate. The Department is currently looking at the legislative framework on fly tipping to see if any changes can be made to help local authorities and the Environment Agency in their role. The Environment Agency are also working to establish an environmental crime unit that will bear down on problems such as fly tipping through, among other things, improved intelligence and surveillance systems.
	In October 2001 we published a joint consultation document with DTLR on measures to remove abandoned and untaxed vehicles from the streets more quickly and, for the longer term, bring forward changes to vehicle registration and licensing procedures to ensure greater accuracy of DVLA's vehicle record. Regulations to reduce the statutory notice periods after which local authorities can remove abandoned vehicles were laid before the House on 19 March and came into force on 9 April.
	The Environment Agency has strong existing powers available to take action against illegally deposited waste.

Human Behaviour and the Environment

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research has been conducted (a) by and (b) for (i) her Department, (ii) the Environment Agency and (iii) other Government bodies in relation to human behaviour and the environment; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: DEFRA undertakes and commissions a large volume of research every year, some of which deals with issues of human behaviour and the environment. At any one time the Department is funding around 1500 research projects supporting around forty individual policy subject areas. Details of all ongoing DEFRA research projects and research results can now be found on the Department's searchable website at: http:// www.defra.gov.uk/research/default.htm. For example, the Domestic Noise Complaints Study published in 1999 can be found on the site. The results of the recent Noise Attitudes Survey (which was published by DEFRA on May 20 2002) will also be available on the site shortly.
	In addition, the Department sponsors the Sustainable Development Research Network (website: http://www.sd-research.org.uk/ ), which aims to identify and promote research which integrates environmental, social and economic objectives.
	The Environment Agency has completed numerous research projects on various aspects of human behaviour and the environment. A main focus of research to date has been to understand values and perceptions of the environmental business of the Agency, for example in relation to industry, nuclear waste management and water management. The specific themes covered by the research are:
	public participation and involvement: a major project on Evaluating Methods for Public Participation has recently been completed; the Agency is also participating in a European research project on Enhancing Transparency and Public Participation in Nuclear Waste Management. A number of smaller projects have looked at issues such as information provision and public participation in specific decision-making contexts.
	policy advocacy processes: a three-year project is being developed which looks at policy advocacy in different areas, such as waste.
	partnership: as well as a number of local projects, a national project is being developed to equip staff to work better in partnerships with other stakeholders.
	risk communication: research has explored public perceptions of environmental risks and approaches to risk communication, particularly in relation to risks related to industrial pollution and flooding; the Agency also participated in a major project with other government departments and agencies looking at the Social Amplification of Risk.
	social impacts: a number of projects focusing on the impacts of flooding, including health impacts and impacts on vulnerable groups, are due to be completed this year;
	understanding social perspectives on the environmental issues that concern the Agency: the perspectives of different stakeholders were explored in a recent project on Industrial Pollution Communication;
	social aspects of sustainable development: two projects on integrated appraisal (one on Appraisal Methods and one looking at integrated appraisal in the context of the Water Framework Directive) have contributed to knowledge in this sphere.
	More information on some of these findings are available at www.webookshop.com/ea/rdreport
	Additionally, the Agency has recently carried out a research study into people's behaviours and attitudes to household waste. This research showed that people would recycle more of their rubbish if it were made easier to do so by local councils. [Almost 9 out of 10 people claim that they would be likely to separate rubbish for recycling if the council provided appropriate containers]. Results were published in May this year and are available at www.environment-agency.gov.uk/subect/waste/232021/ 239537/296229
	DEFRA does not collect or hold data on research undertaken or commissioned by other Government Departments on this issue.

EAGA

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will publish the list of complaints that she has received from members on the performance of EAGA.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 27 June 2002
	Between June 2001 and May 2002 I received 111 representations from members regarding the performance of the Warm Front scheme in areas where EAGA is Scheme Manager. These representations cover areas such as delays to installation, communication issues and standards of workmanship.

EU Committees

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Advisory Committee for the implementation of the directive on the reduction of the sulphur content of certain liquid fuels is next due to meet; whether any experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: Meetings of this Committee are held as and when required. The UK would usually be represented by an official from my Department but the precise representation would be decided in the light of the matters to be discussed. There have been no meetings of the Committee over the last 12 months, and we are not aware of any planned.

EU Committees

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Committee for the implementation of legislation on ambient air quality assessment and management is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: Meetings of this Committee are held as and when required. The UK would usually be represented by an official from my Department but the precise representation would be decided in the light of the matters to be discussed. There have been no meetings of the Committee over the last 12 months, and we are not aware of any planned.

EU Committees

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Committee for the adaptation to technical and scientific progress of the air quality values and guide values for sulphur dioxide and suspended particulates is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: This part of directive 80/779/EEC on air quality limit values and guide values for sulphur dioxide and suspended particles has been repealed.

EU Committees

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Committee for the adaptation to technical progress of the Directive on air quality standards for nitrogen dioxide is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: This part of directive 85/203/EEC on air quality standards for nitrogen dioxide as been repealed.

EU Committees

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Committee for the Adaptation to Technical Progress and the implementation of the directive on the control of volatile organic compound emissions resulting from the storage of petrol and its distribution from terminals to service stations is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: Meetings of this committee are held as and when required. The UK would usually be represented by an official from my Department, but the precise representation would be decided in the light of the matters to be discussed. There have been no meetings of the committee over the last 12 months, and we are not aware of any planned.

EU Committees

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the EU Committee for the Adaptation to Scientific and Technical Progress of the directive on the limit value for lead in the air is next due to meet; whether experts nominated by the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: This part of directive 82/884/EEC on a limit value for lead in the air has been repealed.

Bovine TB

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the conclusions were of the meeting on 12 June of the Independent Scientific Group on Bovine TB.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 1 July 2002
	The Independent Scientific Group on Cattle TB (ISG) met on 12 June in London as part of its normal schedule of meetings. The group noted progress on the Krebs field trial, including recent proactive culling operations in Cornwall and Gloucestershire, and discussed future work programmes. There was discussion of arrangements to increase collections in the Road Traffic Accident survey of badger carcases for TB and for clearing the backlog of epidemiological questionnaires (TB99) following delays arising from the foot and mouth disease emergency. Consideration was given to additional measures to combat the spread of bovine TB and action outside trial areas. The group reviewed its programme for analysing and interpreting data from cattle TB 'hotspots' outside trial areas, data on inconclusive reactors and data on the gamma interferon test, and confirmed its intention to finalise a report by the autumn.
	Various research activities were discussed including a report on post genomic research on M.bovis at the Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA) and recently published research by VLA on the pathology in cattle following M.bovis BCG vaccination against experimental bovine TB.
	A summary of ISG agendas and notes of meetings is published on DEFRA's website at http://defraweb/animal/ tb/tb/.

Bovine TB

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many (a) total TB tests on herds, (b) herds under movement restriction, (c) tests on unrestricted herds, (d) new herd incidents and (e) new confirmed herd incidents there were in each county between 1 January and 30 March, and what percentage of tests on unrestricted herds in each county resulted in a confirmed herd incident.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 1 July 2002
	The information is not available in the format requested. A statistical summary for Great Britain as a whole for the period 1 January to 30 March is given in table 1.
	A more detailed breakdown of the information requested in sub-points (a), (b), (d) and (e) is given in table 2. This is broken down by State Veterinary Service region for the period 1 January to 31 May. Statistics for unrestricted herds (sub-point (c)) are not available in the same format.
	All the statistics given are available on the DEFRA website at: http://defraweb/animalh/tb/default.htm.
	
		Table 1Tb incidents in Great Britain in 2002herds
		
			 Date  Total TB tests on herds(3) Herds under movement restriction(4) Tests on unrestricted herds(5) Of which: New herd incidents(6) Of which: New confirmed herd incidents(7) Tests on unrestricted herds resulting in a confirmed new herd incident(8) (percentage) 
		
		
			 January 2002 3,280 1,107 2,952 196 115 3.9 
			 February 2002 4,747 1,381 4,423 366 (9)222238 (9)5.05.4 
			 March 2002 5,012 1,617 4,670 316  (9)4.04.4 
		
	
	Note:
	Figures are provisional and subject to revision.
	(3) Herds for which tuberculin skin testing is carried out on at least one animal during the period shown.
	(4) Herds restricted at any time during the period shown due to a TB incident.
	(5) Any tests carried out during the period shown on a herd which was not already under restriction due to a TB incident. Also any cases found, during the period shown, by routine inspection at the slaughterhouse of animals from a herd not already under restriction.
	(6) Herds which were previously TB free but either had cattle that reacted to a tuberculin test or had a tuberculous animal disclosed by routine inspection at slaughter, during the period shown.
	(7) New herd incidents (column 4) for which at least one animal was subsequently confirmed to have TB.
	(8) Column 5 as a percentage of column 3.
	(9) Estimates for February and March 2002 are given as a range as a number of the test results are still awaited. It is expected that the final figure, when available, will fall within this range.
	Source:
	DEFRA's Animal Health Database
	
		Table 2Detailed Tb raw data: 1 January31 May 2002 Great Britain
		
			   West North East Total for England Total for Wales Total for Scotland Total for GB 
		
		
			 (a) Total number of herd tests 8,140 4,271 1,576 13,987 3,903 2,309 20,199 
			 (b) Herds under TB2 restrictions because of a TB incident at some time during the reporting period 1,454 171 32 1,657 421 57 2,135 
			 (d) Total new herd TB incidents 820 129 17 966 226 32 1,224 
			 (e) of which are considered confirmed new TB incidents (i.e. CNIs) 472 69 5 546 116 9 671 
		
	
	Notes:
	In using and interpreting table 2 the following points should be noted:
	A proportion of TB incidents remain unclassified, awaiting the results of culture tests which can take several months. Therefore the number of confirmed incidents, for 2002 in particular, will currently be under-recorded. For instance, 9 per cent. of new TB incidents in January to May 2002 were unclassified when the data were extracted.
	The number of TB incidents depends on the number of tests carried out and on the nature of the testing regime at the time (as well as on the underlying prevalence of the disease). In 2002, testing resources are being concentrated on herds which are overdue their tests (because of the backlog following the foot and mouth disease outbreak) and which have therefore had a longer period than usual in which to contract the disease. Those currently being tested also contain a higher than usual proportion of high risk herds. During the FMD outbreak, TB testing was significantly reduced and necessarily targeted to higher risk herds e.g. those tested following routine inspection of animals at slaughterhouses. At any time, the more herds are tested, the more likely you are to find TB.
	It is therefore very difficult to assess the underlying trends at this time.
	Any reactors, inconclusive reactors and direct contacts still awaiting removal and slaughter on the date of the data download were not included in the tables. These only show the number of reactors, inconclusive reactors and direct contacts that had been slaughtered as at 11 June.

Bovine TB

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on progress with Krebs trials in triplets I and J.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 1 July 2002
	The planning of work in triplets I and J of the Krebs trial is proceeding in accordance with the timetable agreed with the Independent Scientific Group on Cattle TB. Under procedures applicable to all triplets designed to safeguard the safety of staff, details of current and future operations are not disclosed until they have been completed. A summary of the completed work for each triplet is shown on DEFRA's website at http://defraweb/animal/tb/tb/

Bovine TB

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her target date is for eliminating the backlog of herd tests for Bovine TB.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 1 July 2002
	The rolling nature of the backlog of herd testing for bovine TB makes it difficult for us to set a specific target for its elimination although we are working hard to address the backlog which currently stands at 20K. As overdue tests are cleared, more fall due and join the backlog. In addition as further incidents of TB are disclosed more testing is triggered.

Sheep

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of (a) the number of sheep and (b) the proportion of the national flock which were born before the imposition of the ban on feeding animal protein to ruminants and are still alive.

Margaret Beckett: holding answer 1 July 2002
	BSE-related feed controls relating to ruminants date back to 1988, but the feed ban in relation to mammalian protein is considered to have been effective from 1 August 1996, when mammalian meat and bonemeal was banned from all farmed livestock feed to prevent the possibility of cross-contamination of ruminant feed. It is estimated that the number of sheep still alive which were born before 1 August 1996, is less than 500, representing approximately 3 per cent. of the UK national flock.

GM Crops

Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when ACRE formed its sub-group to look into the impact of releasing genetically modified organisms on soil ecology; how many times the group has met; which (a) laboratories and (b) trial sites are being used for the monitored research; and when the research findings will be available.

Michael Meacher: The current workplan of the Advisory Committee on Releases to the Environment (ACRE) as published in their 2000 Annual Report included provision for six workgroups to be established in two phases. Three were established last year. The second phase to start this summer, will include a subgroup to review the impact of GMOs on soil ecology. The group will give consideration to potential hazards and how they might be realised, the current or future GM crops and traits that might give most concern to soil ecology and where the main gaps are in current scientific understanding. The group has not yet met and is not carrying out any research in laboratories or in the field. The outputs of this group including minutes of meetings will be published on the ACRE website at http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/gm/acre/index.htm.

GM Crops

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the scientific assessments peer reviews that data from the GM field scale evaluations will undergo; and in what order they will take place.

Michael Meacher: The data from the farm-scale evaluations will be collated, analysed and presented in the form of a series of scientific papers written by the research consortium conducting the ecological studies. Their work is being overseen by the Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) to ensure that it is of the highest scientific standard.
	Once complete and approved by the SSC, the papers will be submitted to a reputable scientific journal for peer review and publication at the discretion of the journal. We anticipate that the report of the spring-sown crops, maize, spring oil seed rape and beet, will be published in summer 2003 and the autumn-sown oil seed rape in 2004.

Benthic Fauna

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what (a) guidance and (b) legislation is in place with regard to benthic fauna; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: The UK Biodiversity Action Plan (UK BAP) provides a framework for the conservation of species and habitats, including benthic fauna, as well as the integration of biodiversity into all areas of policy. The UK BAP has some 40 individual action plans for important marine and coastal habitats and species, including mammals, fish, molluscs, sea anemones and algae.
	The EC Habitats Directive requires member states to protect areas that support certain habitats and species, including examples of benthic fauna. My Department is working with the statutory conservation agencies to identify and select special areas of conservation in and beyond the UK's territorial waters.
	Under the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985, a licence is required before any material can be deposited in the sea for either disposal or construction purposes. As part of the licensing process, a full environmental assessment is carried out taking account of all potential impacts on the marine environment, including benthic fauna.

Benthic Fauna

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what changes there have been to benthic fauna since 1997; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: Measurement of the diversity of benthic fauna is a key component in understanding the health of UK coastal waters. We have set in place a National Marine Monitoring Programme that, on an annual basis, assesses the benthic community at a network of sites in our coastal seas.
	DEFRA's Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) has found that apart from some reduction in diversity in estuaries due to natural stressors and pollutants, the UK's coastal waters are generally healthy and support diverse benthic fauna showing no detrimental changes.
	CEFAS is currently engaged in a repeat of a detailed 1986 survey of benthic communities across the North sea in association with European Marine Institutes under the auspices of the International Council for the Exploration of the sea. This survey will provide the most comprehensive study to date on changes in benthic communities in the North Sea.

Environmental Behaviour

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much her Department has spent on (a) programmes and (b) campaigns conducted by her Department related to changing individual behaviour in relation to the environment (i) in each year since 1997 and (ii) since 7 June 2001; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: The Department supports several programmes to change individual behaviours in relation to the environment. They develop work undertaken before the General Election by the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. These include work by the Energy Saving Trust, Environmental Campaigns Limited (incorporating the former Tidy Britain Group and Going for Green organisations), and the recipients of Environmental Action Fund grant. The Are you doing your bit? campaign was launched by the former Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions in 1998 and covers both environmental and transport topics. We have also consistently taken advantage of opportunities to promote individual action in other projects and public engagements, notably in the build-up to the World Summit on Sustainable Development.
	
		Expenditure by DEFRA and DETR on programmes and campaigns to change individual behaviour 199798 to 200102
		
			 Period 199798 199899 19992000 200001 2001(10) 2002(11) 
		
		
			 Environmental Action Fund, most of which supports individual action 3,651 4,260 3,909 4,161 698 3,492 
			 DETR/DEFRA support for ENCAMS for core costs and programmes to promote individual action 3,997 3,697 3,763 3,763 590 2,952 
			 DETR/DEFRA support(12) for Energy Saving trust advertising to promote individual action 3,313 3,532 3,726 4,208 792 3,959 
			 Programme total 10,961 11,489 11,398 12,132 2,080 10,403 
			
			 Campaign total(13)  3,400 7,000 9,300 100 500(14) 
		
	
	(10) 1 April to 6 June 2001. Estimated by taking two-twelfths of annual spend.
	(11) 7 June 2001 to 31 March 2002. Estimated by taking ten-twelfths of annual spend.
	(12) It is not possible to disaggregate a small element of Scottish Executive support from this figure.
	(13) Representing expenditure on the are you doing your bit? campaign launched in 1998.
	(14) Most of the campaign's planned resource were allocated in 200102 to rural support during the foot and mouth disease outbreak.
	Notes:
	(All figures are out-turn, in 000. Figures before 7 June 2002 relate to expenditure by the former Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions).

Vacant Posts

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which posts in her Department (a) centrally and (b) regionally are vacant; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The vacancy position in DEFRA's HQ Units (based in London, York and Guildford) as at 28 June 2002 was as follows (grades are as stated and include equivalent specialist grades):
	
		
			 Grade  
		
		
			 Administrative Assistants 12.5 
			 Administrative Officers 39 
			 Executive Officers 35 
			 Higher Executive Officers 38 
			 Senior Executive Officers 19 
			 Grade 7 30 
			 Grade 6 9 
			 Senior Civil Service 2 
		
	
	Action is in hand to fill those posts for which funding has been confirmed.
	The situation in core-DEFRA's regional offices (excluding its Agencies) is also subject to available funding. The regional organisations such as the Rural Development Service and State Veterinary Service are currently assessing vacancies in the light of budgets for this financial year.

Water Industry

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what powers Ofwat has to control monopolies in water and sewerage companies.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 3 July 2002
	The Director General of Water Services' powers and duties are set out in the Water Industry Act 1991. He uses his powers to place conditions on companies that, among other things, set their annual price limits. The Director General also has powers to make enforcement orders to secure companies' compliance with their conditions of appointment or with other requirements.
	The Director exercises his powers and duties in a manner which he believes facilitates competition and promotes economy and efficiency. In the absence of a fully competitive market for water and sewerage services, the Director uses proxies for market competition, primarily comparative competition.
	Any mergers between existing water and sewerage companies would result in the loss of a comparator and are automatically referred to the Competition Commission. In considering the effects of the proposed merger on the public interest, the Commission is required by the Water Industry Act 1991 to have regard to the principle of avoiding prejudice to Ofwat's ability to make comparisons between different water enterprises.

Water Industry

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what powers Ofwat has to control the level of charges for services provided by water and sewerage companies.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 3 July 2002
	The Director General of Water Services has powers to set price limits. Within its price limit, each company is responsible for deciding individual charges. Under the Water Industry Act 1999, companies must publish these charges annually in a charges scheme, for which they must obtain the Director General's approval. Companies are prohibited from charging household customers other than in accordance with an approved charges scheme.

Game Excise Licences

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent (a) representations and (b) discussions she has had; what assessment she has made regarding game excise licences; and what plans she has to change them.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 5 July 2002
	The Government have received a number of recent representations on game licences. This is a highly complex area, and we are considering these and their implications for the future of the game licensing regime.

Country Sports

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much her Department and its predecessors have spent on country sports, broken down by category, in each of the last 10 years.

Alun Michael: The Department has no provision in its budgets for promoting country sports. Further, I am not aware of any such spending on country sports in respect of MAFF and the parts of the Home Office which came into DEFRA before June 2001.
	With colleagues, I shall do what I can to promote sport in general in rural areas, including fishing and shooting as well as a variety of other sports.

Earth Summit

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs who will make up the United Kingdom's delegation to the Rio+10 Summit in Johannesburg.

Michael Meacher: We are currently in the process of considering the delegation for the forthcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development but the final decision on the make up of the delegation will rest with the Prime Minister. However, both the Prime Minister and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will attend the summit.
	We have been working closely with various stakeholder groups in our preparations for World Summit on Sustainable Development and representatives have been part of the UK delegation at previous preparatory meetings for WSSD. This will continue to be the case for the summit itself.

Common Land

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what representations she has received regarding changes in the value of land registered as common land under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000;
	(2)  what analysis she has made of changes in the value of land registered as common land under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000; and if she will make a statement.

Alun Michael: The Department has not received any specific representations about changes in the value of registered common land which might be due to the provisions contained in the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. This was an issue on which comments were invited during consultation on draft regulations under section 68 of the Act relating to vehicular access over common land, but no specific representations were received. As the published regulatory impact assessment makes clear, the Department cannot predict with confidence the detailed impact of the regulations.

Landfill

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when her Department has advertised for the position of landfill directive manager in her Department since 1997; on what dates the post has been filled; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The position of landfill directive manager (now known as 'Head of Landfill and Composting Team') has been advertised and filled as follows since 1997:
	July 2000:
	post advertised internally within DETR. Post filled on 20 October 2000.
	December 2001:
	post became vacant and was advertised internally in DEFRA. Post filled on 18 March 2002.

Animal Welfare

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to meet representatives of the livestock industry to discuss animal welfare.

Elliot Morley: We regularly meet representatives of the livestock industry to discuss animal welfare issues.

Wildlife Crime

Betty Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action her Department is taking to tackle crime in relation to wildlife.

Michael Meacher: My Department is determined to tackle wildlife crime and we have a number of relevant initiatives under way. For example, I launched the National Wildlife Crime Intelligence Unit at the end of April, and we have begun a review of Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Enforcement) Regulations 1997, which will include an assessment of the level of penalties and police powers of arrest for wildlife offences.

Grassland

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the reasons why the conditions of (a) lowland and upland calcareous grassland, (b) upland acid grassland, (c) upland heathland and (d) bogs in England are generally unfavourable; and what measures she is taking to improve them.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 4 July 2002
	Assessment of the condition of these habitat types, or of specific features within them, is carried out in a number of contexts.
	Countryside Survey 2000 has provided a national assessment of long-term changes in the extent and condition of habitats. The Department is funding further research to improve understanding of the underlying reasons for this and the results are expected in Spring 2003. The report and related material can be found at www.cs2000.org.uk.
	As part of the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (UKBAP) individual action plans have been published for upland and lowland calcareous grassland, upland heathland and bogs. Each plan contains an assessment of the factors affecting the habitat, targets for maintenance or improvement of the habitat condition and actions aimed at achieving these targets. Implementation of the action plans is being led by the statutory conservation agencies in partnership with the relevant Government and voluntary sector bodies. Further information on the plans can be found at www.ukbap.org.uk.
	English Nature also assess the condition of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). Where SSSIs are not in a favourable condition, a number of factors may contribute to this. Agriculture is a major factor, particularly grazing intensity. Overgrazing or undergrazing can adversely affect the condition of sites. We are addressing these problems on a number of fronts. For example, we continue to expand agri-environment schemes, which can assist many of these habitats. In addition, the sheep quota purchase scheme announced on 26 June is an example of the development of more direct and innovative measures to help alleviate grazing pressure.
	Grazing regimes also affect these habitats on common land. We shall shortly announce our plans for improving the legislation to enable better management of common land.
	In relation to SSSIs, English Nature are also able to enter into management agreements with land managers to prevent activities which can be damaging to these sites. Currently 201,000 hectares are subject to such agreements.

Air Pollution

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research her Department has commissioned into (a) the acute, short- term and (b) the chronic, long-term effects on health of (i) nitrogen dioxide, (ii) carbon monoxide and (iii) particles in regard to air pollution.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 27 June 2002
	I have been asked to reply.
	The Department has been commissioning research into the effects of air pollutants on health since 1991. A range of projects dealing with both long-term and short-term effects of air pollutants on health has been funded. Many of these projects deal with more than one air pollutant.
	Decisions regarding a new research programme were taken on 14 June. Nine projects will be funded to a total cost of about 1 million. Of the nine projects, three deal with long-term effects, four with short-term effects and one with both long and short-term effects. One project focuses specifically on nitrogen dioxide, the others deal with pollutants in general with a special focus on particles. No work on carbon monoxide has been agreed as yet though a project on long-term effects of exposure to carbon monoxide is being held as a first reserve.
	Details of the new programme will be placed in the Library.
	A summary list of all work funded prior to the new programme will also be placed in the Library.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Nepal

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her Department's assessment is of the security situation in Nepal; and what effect it has had on her Department's ability to provide development and humanitarian aid.

Clare Short: The security situation has deteriorated sharply since the Maoists abandoned peace negotiations in November last year. Since then an estimated 3,000 people have died as a result of the conflict.
	The Government holds all the district towns, but large parts of the countryside are under effective control of the Maoists. The intensity of the conflict varies, with the Maoist heartland areas of the mid-west and far-west most affected.
	The war is generally regarded to be unwinnable by military means alone, as the country is ideally suited to guerrilla warfare. There are growing concerns about human rights violations on both sides. In recent weeks, there has been a noticeable decline in confrontations between the Security Forces and the Maoists, but this lull in the fighting is believed to be temporary.
	While there is no direct threat against development workers, there are indirect risks of being caught in crossfire. Restrictions on movement, especially of people and supplies, and the withdrawal of Government counterparts in rural areas, means that Government development programmes in some remote areas has effectively stopped. None the less, Maoists are allowing continuation of development projects in some areas under their control, particularly where work is strongly supported by local communities.
	UK funded development assistance is continuing, albeit more slowly. In addition to existing work on rural livelihoods, rural infrastructure, health and governance, my Department is implementing a programme of short- term support for people in conflict affected areas, and are working to re-orientate the entire DFID programme towards conflict resolution.
	We have not yet reached a situation of acute humanitarian crisis except in a few isolated locations, and there are no plans as yet to provide humanitarian assistance although we are monitoring the situation very closely.

Nepal

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much her Department allocated for (a) bi-lateral aid to Nepal and (b) non- Governmental organisations working in Nepal for (i) 200001 and (ii) 200102; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: UK development assistance to Nepal in 200001 totalled 17.165 million, of which approximately 2.9 million was channelled through NGOs working in Nepal. In 200102 the approximate figure for total expenditure was 20 million, and around 3 million was channelled through NGOs.

Montserrat

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 in Montserrat.

Clare Short: The figures requested are available in Statistics on International Development, (SID), Table 7.2 which shows a breakdown of bilateral aid by country in the Americas for the last five financial years. A copy of this publication is available in the Library of the House.

St. Helena

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 in St. Helena.

Clare Short: The figures requested are available in Statistics on International Development, (SID), Table 7.1 which shows a breakdown of bilateral aid for the last five financial years. A copy of this publication is available in the Library of the House.

Civil Society Challenge Fund

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 200001 on the Civil Society Challenge Fund.

Clare Short: The figures requested are available in Statistics on International Development, (SID), Table 13 which shows a breakdown of bilateral grants and other aid in kind, including the Civil Society Challenge Fund, for the last five financial years. A copy of this publication is available in the Library of the House.

Oceana Regional

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 in Oceana Regional.

Clare Short: The figures requested are available in Statistics on International Development, (SID), Table 7.5 which shows a breakdown of bilateral aid to the Pacific region for the last five financial years. A copy of this publication is available in the Library of the House.

Overseas Aid

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 in (a) Anguilla, (b) Burma, (c) Jordan and (d) Vietnam.

Clare Short: The figures requested are available in Statistics on International Development, (SID), Tables 7.1 to 7.4 which show a breakdown of bilateral aid by country for the last five financial years. A copy of this publication is available in the Library of the House.

Urban Development Projects

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 on water and sanitation in infrastructure and urban development projects.

Clare Short: Annual figures are given in the table.
	
		
			   million(15) Percentage(16) 
		
		
			 199798 617 9 
			 199899 1,168 11 
			 19992000 940 7 
			 200001 1,388 7 
			 200102(17) 1,306 1 
		
	
	(15) Bilateral commitments total. For projects with a commitment figure greater than 100,000.
	(16) Proportion on water supply and sanitation.
	(17) Provisional figures.

Urban Development Projects

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 on engineering in infrastructure and urban development projects.

Clare Short: My Department's expenditure on engineering in Infrastructure and Urban Development since 199899 has been as set out.
	
		000 
		
			  Financial year  Energy Transport and Communications Water and Sanitation Urban and Industrial Development  Construction 
		
		
			 199899 61,001 47,673 29,846 6,678 878 
			 19992000 38,686 48,820 35,902 9,430 628 
			 200001 32,279 40,615 34,204 11,241 479 
			 Total 131,966 137,107 99,951 27,349 1,985

Joint Funding Scheme

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 200001 on the civil society bilateral programme entitled the Joint Funding Scheme.

Clare Short: The figures requested are available in Statistics on International Development, (SID), Table 13 which shows a breakdown of bilateral grants and other aid in kind including the Joint Funding Scheme for the last five financial years. A copy of this publication is available in the Library of the House.

Developing Countries

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the value of property rights for poor people in the economic development of developing countries; what her Department is doing to promote property rights of poor people in the developing world; which projects her Department supports that promote the establishment of property rights for poor people in developing countries; and what the value of each project was in each of the last five years.

Clare Short: Property rights are an important element in poor people's range of livelihood assets and can assist directly in processes that eliminate poverty. My Department has made a series of assessments of property rights, mainly concerning land ownership and housing, in both rural and urban contexts.
	Research has been undertaken, for example, to establish the range of tenure arrangements available to poor people in developing countries that allow people degrees of security and freedom in where they live, from which they can build their livelihoods for the future. The results are published by Intermediate Technology Development Group Publishing under the title Land, Rights and Innovation. This tenure framework is currently being used to observe how poor people manage to establish their property rights in 15 developing countries. The work is being shared with the UN and World bank.
	My Department is promoting better awareness of the role of property rights in poverty reduction through core funding support to UN-Habitat who are running their Global Campaign for Secure Tenure in 11 developing countries, and core funding support to the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions which is based in Geneva. Support is also provided to the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights.
	Secure land and property rights for the poor are essential if they are to contribute to and benefit from economic development, and to unlock access to essential services and to finance for small-scale investment opportunities of all kinds. Many poor people have no or insecure property rights and can fall victim to forced evictions by landlords governments and commercial land development in both town and country.
	Secure rights can be provided through various forms of tenure, and DFID is working actively throughout the world, especially in Africa and with global institutions to help developing countries establish effective policies and institutions to deliver secure property rights to the poor and prevent evictions. In those cases where we have a direct role to play, DFID projects have helped governments to deliver secure rights and land titles to the poor; I would highlight:
	South Africa were we spent 5.9 million up to 2000a further phase is now being prepared in addition to a project earmarked at 5 million to help the SADC countries strengthen property rights for the poor throughout the Southern African Region
	Guyana where a 4.39 million project is due to end in 2003
	Support to Kenya Land Reform 0.47 million
	Uganda Land Laws (Tenure) 1.35 million
	Asian Coalition for Housing Rights 2.19 million
	Property Rights in Croatia 0.59 million
	10 projects in the former Soviet Union totalling 3.53 million, and
	295,000 through NGO partners in Bangladesh, directly assisting the poor access land and secure their rights.
	41 projects both small and large with a total value of 34.34 million have been contributing to our overall efforts over the last five years. In addition DFID supports research projects into how best to enable access to land and secure property rights for the poor in different contexts in various countries; in the same period there have been 19 research projects with a total value of 2.5 million.

Kenya

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions she has had with (a) the Government of Kenya and (b) the British high commission in Nairobi regarding political and ethnic violence and human rights abuses in Kenya; and what projects her Government support to promote justice for victims of ethnic and political violence in Kenya.

Clare Short: British officials and I raise these issues regularly in our frequent contacts with the Kenyan Government. Our programme in Kenya includes a project co-funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence to prevent and settle internal conflict. We also support organisations offering legal aid to disadvantaged people including those who may be affected by ethnic and political violence; and we are working with the Kenyan Government to develop a pilot legal aid scheme.

Kenya

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her Department is doing to promote democratic reform in Kenya.

Clare Short: DFID's Political Empowerment Programme together with other donors' programmes, aim to strengthen Kenya's political system by enabling poor and marginalised groups to organise and influence government and strengthening democratic institutions including Parliament. In addition DFID and high commission officials have frequent contacts with the Kenyan Government and Opposition on democratic issues.

Kenya

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment her Department has made of the level of (a) political violence and (b) human rights abuses in Kenya; and how her Department responds to such violence and human rights abuses.

Clare Short: My officials in Nairobi, working in close consultation with our British High Commission, carefully monitor all reports of political violence and human rights abuses in Kenya and raise any concerns with the relevant authorities.

Failed States

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her policy is towards failed states; and which countries her Department classifies as failed states.

Clare Short: Our policy is to help resolve the underlying economic, social and political problems by promoting change in government and its policies and to work, where we can, inside and outside government, to achieve our objectives, especially support to poor people.
	Problems of policy, commitment and governance are found in varying degrees in a number of states.

Human Rights Commissions

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development in which countries she contributes assistance to the work of a human rights commission; how much has been contributed in the past three years for which figures are available; and what proportion of the total budget of that body this sum represents.

Clare Short: My Department has directly supported the human rights commissions of Rwanda and Zambia. In the former, we financed a review, and in the latter the production of a strategy. This work cost 10,800 in 200001 and 27,200 in 199899 respectively. I shall write to the hon. Member on the final part of his question, which could not be researched in the time available.
	The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights takes primary responsibility for assisting governments to establish such institutions. Planned funding by my Department of OHCHR amounts to 6 million over three years, under the terms of an Institutional Strategy Paper sighed in 1999. This support is for broad improvement in capacity. Under this arrangement we have provided in the calendar years:
	
		
			   million 
		
		
			 2000 1.247 
			 2001 2.115 
		
	
	Information on its website, http:/www.unhchr.ch shows that total extra-budgetary expenditure in 2001 by OHCHR was US$48.8 million, of which 0.8 per cent. was allocated to national human rights institutions.
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office provided 100,000 to OHCHR in 2001 for support to national institutions, and plan 150,000 in 2002.

G8 Digital Opportunities Task Force

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff from her Department are working with the G8 Digital Opportunities Task Force.

Clare Short: The G8 DOT Force was formally wound up in June 2002, but during its two years of existence, my Department was represented by its Director General Resources, who called on appropriate specialist support as necessary in carrying out this role. In practice, this specialist support drew in the additional expertise of at least five other key staff.

G8 Digital Opportunities Task Force

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what financial support her Department is giving in 200203 to the G8 Digital Opportunities Task Force.

Clare Short: The G8 DOT Force was formally wound up in June 2002, but we intend to continue our support for some of its key deliverables, especially those focused on Africa. During the DOT Force's two years of existence, my Department spent over 300,000 in direct support to encourage a strong developing country and civil society voice in the DOT Force.

Malawi

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the results of the initiative to improve safety, security and access to justice in Malawi.

Clare Short: A formal assessment of progress is not due until April 2003. The MASSAJ programme is working closely with key institutions in the Malawi justice sectorincluding the Ministries of Justice and Home Affairs, Malawi Police Service, the judiciary and the magistracy; it is supporting the redrafting of the anti-corruption legislation and the roll of pilot juvenile justice initiatives. The programme includes co-operation with (i) the EU on strengthening the independence of the judiciary; (ii) NORAD in reducing the incidence of small arms; and (iii) USAID on strengthening paralegal support which enables poor people to access justice.

Buildings Insurance

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the cost of buildings insurance to her Department was (a) before and (b) after 11 September 2001.

Clare Short: Only one of our buildings was previously insured, namely our London headquarters at 94 Victoria Street. Under the terms of the lease, we were required to reimburse the landlord at an annual cost of 40,000. Since vacating these premises in December last year, our buildings insurance costs are nil, since our buildings are self-insured, ie the Crown carries the risk. The specific events of 11 September had no direct consequence on our insurance costs.

Building Values

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the buildings owned by her Department and estimate the market value of each of them.

Clare Short: The only UK property owned by DFID is our office in East Kilbride. It was last valued at 3.5 million, of which the building itself is 2.9 million and the surrounding land 0.6 million. In addition, we own three freehold properties in Zimbabwe, last valued at 276,000, one property in the Solomon Islands (value: 65,000) and one in Kiribati (value: 17,000).

International Development Finance

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 on the African Development Bank;
	(2)  if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 on the European Development Fund VIII;
	(3)  if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 on the Caribbean Development Bank;
	(4)  if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 on the Asian Development Fund;
	(5)  if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 on the Asian Development Bank;
	(6)  if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 on the Inter-American Development Bank;
	(7)  if she will provide a breakdown of her Department's expenditure since 199899 on IMF funds.

Clare Short: The figures requested are available in Statistics on International Development, (SID), Table 8 which shows a breakdown of gross public expenditure on multilateral contributions for the last five financial years. A copy of this publication is available in the Library of the House.

Anti-corruption Issues

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the cost to her Department was of the establishment in January of a resource centre to advise on anti-corruption issues.

Clare Short: The cost of establishing and running the Utstein Anti-Corruption Resource Centre will be approximately 870,000 over three years. Support for the resource centre will be shared between the four Utstein partners of the Netherlands, Norway, Germany and the UK.

Anti-corruption Commission (Sierra Leone)

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what contribution has been made by her Department to the establishment of the Anti-Corruption Commission in Sierra Leone.

Clare Short: My Department has been involved since 1999 in establishing the Anti-Corruption Commission in Sierra Leone, from initial feasibility studies, detailed organisational design work, refurbishment of office accommodation, and the provision of equipment. We have allocated 1.45 million to the organisation since October 2000. Currently four British anti-corruption experts are attached to the commission providing technical support on prevention, and helping to investigate cases. Publicity and prevention campaigns have been launched in a number of key areas, helping to place corruption at the very top of the political agenda.

Cameroon

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what international election observers were present at the recent parliamentary and municipal elections in Cameroon; and if she will make a statement on the outcome of the elections.

Jack Straw: I have been asked to reply.
	The Commonwealth, Francophonie, UN and OAU all had election observer teams in Cameroon at the time of the municipal and legislative elections.
	We are concerned at early indications of procedural irregularities in the elections, and now await both the official results of the elections and the reports of the observer missions.

DEFENCE

Times Letter

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  when he was advised, and by whom, that the named authors of a letter to The Times published on 13 May were not serving officers;
	(2)  when his Department informed The Times that the names of the officers purporting to have signed the letter published on 13 May were bogus.

Adam Ingram: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence was advised on the day of publication by the Director News that the signed authors of the letter were not members of the Armed Forces.
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 10 June 2002, Official Report, column 757W to the hon. Member for Essex North (Mr. Jenkin).

Ro-Ro Ferries

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on progress with procurement of roll-on, roll-off ferries requirement as listed in the strategic defence review.

Lewis Moonie: holding answer 25 April 2002
	Construction of the six ships to meet the Ministry of Defence's requirement is proceeding to schedule. I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 27 June 2002, Official Report, column 1038W to my hon. Friend the Member for Derby North (Mr. Laxton).

HMS Boxer and HMS Brave

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his deployment plans are for HMS Boxer and HMS Brave.

Adam Ingram: HMS Boxer and HMS Brave are currently moored at HM Naval Base, Portsmouth.
	The ships have been de-equipped to an unclassified status and all stores have been removed. As part of the disposal process, significant quantities of material have been returned to Ministry of Defence stores to assist with fulfilling fleet shortage requirements.
	The platforms are designated for CINCFLEET High Seas Firing (i.e. Hulk Targets) in 200305.

HMS Victoria

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost is of repairs being made to HMS Victoria; how much of this cost the UK will bear; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: My officials have not received any formal representations from the Canadian Government about the condition of the ex upholder class submarine HMS Unseen, now re-named HMCS Victoria, and as such have no information about the cost of repairs. My officials will of course assist with any Canadian inquiries.

HMS Monmouth

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the refit of HMS Monmouth will be complete; what the total cost of the refit will be; when she will return to service; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: HMS Monmouth's refit, including associated sea trials, is planned to complete in spring 2003, at which time the ship will be available for operational deployment. The final price of the refit is still in negotiation, and will be based upon the eventual work package that will emerge from ship surveys. However, it is expected to be in the region of 19 million.

Invincible Class Carriers

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for how many days each of the Invincible class carriers were operational in each of the past five years.

Adam Ingram: For the past five years the Invincible Class Carriers were operational for the following number of days:
	
		
			  Invincible Illustrious Ark Royal 
		
		
			 1997 333 244 0 
			 1998 193 301 0 
			 1999 225 201 0 
			 2000 264 263 0 
			 2001 346 103 53 
		
	
	During the period 1997 until late 2001, HMS ARK ROYAL was not available due firstly, to a period of extended readiness, followed by a major refit period.

84 Squadron

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the establishment of pilots on 84 Squadron is; and how many of these are civilians.

Adam Ingram: Five pilots are established on 84 Squadron including the Commanding Officer. None of the pilots is a civilian.

84 Squadron

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many ground crew support the operations of 84 Squadron; and how many of these are civilians.

Adam Ingram: Forty-seven ground crew support the operations of 84 Squadron. None of the ground crew is a civilian.

Armilla Patrol

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many vessels have been searched by Armilla Patrol warships in each of the past five years.

Adam Ingram: The Royal Navy continues to make a valuable contribution to the Multinational Interception Force deployed in the Gulf, in accordance with UN SCR 665, to verify Iraqi compliance with UN sanctions which focus controls on Iraq's attempts to export oil illegally and import defence equipment and weapons of mass destruction related goods.
	MIF operations are a coalition effort and so are not recorded nationally. However, from ships logs, we believe that in the last three years RN vessels have participated in a total of 145 boardings: 36 in 2000; 57 in 2001; and 52 to date in 2002.

Literacy/Numeracy Rates

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the UK armed forces he estimates have (a) literacy and (b) numeracy problems; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: I will write to hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Territorial Army

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on the deployment of the TA (a) as battlefield replacements and (b) formed units.

Lewis Moonie: The Strategic Defence Review concluded that the main role of the Territorial Army should be to provide formed units and individuals as an essential reinforcement to their Regular Army counterparts when deployed on operations across all military tasks.
	In keeping with this, both volunteer and regular reservists have contributed significantly to operations at home and overseas in recent times.

Munitions Depots

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence in respect of the closure of the munitions depot at Dean Hill, Wiltshire, what will be (a) the expected annual savings to his Department, (b) the anticipated revenue from the sale of married quarters to (i) sitting tenants and (ii) the market, (c) the estimated cost of connection of the married quarters estate to civilian services for (A) electricity, (B) water and (C) gas, (d) the ongoing annual maintenance of the site broken down into (1) buildings, (2) ground maintenance and (3) security and (e) the estimated market value of the site at sale.

Adam Ingram: The annual savings from the closure of the Dean Hill site are estimated to be 2.083 million once all one-off expenditure is taken into account.
	We currently estimate the cost of separating as, electricity50,000; water40,000; sewerage90,000. Gas is already supplied from a separate Calor gas tank. All figures exclude VAT. The annual maintenance budget can be broken down as follows: buildings894,000; grounds maintenance25,000. So far as security is concerned the approximate cost of the Ministry of Defence police presence at DM Dean Hill was 800,000 for financial year 200102.
	Although the Ministry of Defence has assessed the disposal value of the West Dean site and associated residential properties, these are likely to be sold on the open market. To release our estimates of value could influence the eventual receipt, and I am, therefore, withholding this information under Exemption 7 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Departmental Report

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the 2002 departmental report will be published.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him on 15 April 2002, Official Report, column 774W by the then Chief Secretary (Mr. Smith).

Armed Forces Pay

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his estimate is of the average annual rise in pay for individuals employed in the armed forces in each year from 199091 to 200002; what the increase in the defence budget was in each year; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 4 July 2002
	Information on increase in the pay of the armed forces is not available in the form requested. However, the annual pay awards for the armed forces as recommended by the Armed Forces Pay Review Body (AFPRB), for the years 199091 to 200001 are outlined in the table. Overall annual increases in the defence budget for these years are also shown.
	
		Per cent. 
		
			  Financial year  Pay awards Increase/decrease in defence budget 
		
		
			 199091 8.70 -0.85 
			 199192 9.50 3.72 
			 199293 5.90 -9.19 
			 199394 1.50 -3.06 
			 199495 3.00 -2.16 
			 199596 2.30 -7.27 
			 199697 3.20 0.67 
			 199798 3.00 -6.18 
			 199899 3.75 1.17 
			 19992000 3.50 -2.00 
			 200001 3.30 2.50 
		
	
	The figures for the pay awards reflect the AFPRB recommendations for the majority of service personnel in each year. Within these overall awards, however, some personnel have received higher increases where the review body has targeted specific ranks in a given year. The figures in the table exclude the effects of the staging of the implementation of the awards, increases in the level of X factor and increases due to adjustments to the pension abatement.
	Staging of pay awards for the armed forces took place in 1990, 1994, 1996, 1997 and 1998.
	The figures for the defence budget represent the cash outturn in each of the years including the additional costs of operations.

Colchester Garrison

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 1 July 2002, Official Report, column 36W, if he will re-evaluate the terms of the Private Finance Initiative of the new Colchester Garrison; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 5 July 2002
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for North Essex (Mr. Jenkin) on 2 July 2002, Official Report, column 232W.

Nuclear Missile Defence

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure is planned on nuclear missile defence.

Geoff Hoon: holding answer 3 July 2002
	We plan to spend about 4 million on missile defence-related activities, which consist solely of collaborative research and information exchange between the United Kingdom and the United States on ballistic missile defence technologies.

Narcotics

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  if he will list the dedicated counter-narcotics activities of the British armed forces and the costs of these activities in each of the past five years; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what quantities of narcotics have been confiscated by HM forces in each of the past five years.

Adam Ingram: There are no military assets dedicated to counter narcotics activities and consequently no cost directly attributable to the Ministry of Defence. Military forces are, however, made available upon request, when operational commitments and resources allow, to support the counter drugs activities of the law enforcement agencies. Any additional costs for this support are reimbursed by the agency concerned.
	Counter narcotics operations requiring military support resulted in the seizure of drugs valued at 2.3 billion in 19992000 and 40 million in 200102. There were no seizures resulting from operations involving military support in 199798, 199899 or 200001.

Falklands Commemorations

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what events he has attended this year in connection with Falklands conflict commemorations.

Adam Ingram: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence visited the Falklands Islands in March and attended a service of commemoration at the Liberation Memorial in Stanley.
	Following his visit to the islands he also laid a wreath at the memorial in Buenos Aires to commemorate the Argentine service men who died during the conflict.
	I visited the islands in June to represent Her Majesty's Government at commemorations to mark the 20th anniversary of the end of the conflict.

Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

John Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what British military aid is being given to the FYR of Macedonia;
	(2)  what his policy is on future military aid to the FYR of Macedonia.

Adam Ingram: There has been no significant change to British military aid being provided to Macedonia or future policy in that respect since the answer I gave to the hon. Member on 26 March 2002, Official Report, columns 85455W.

Iraq

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on his Department's compliance with UN decisions concerning Iraq.

Geoff Hoon: Government policy towards Iraq has been developed within the framework of UN Security Council Resolutions.
	The British armed forces continue to play an important role in enforcing as far as possible, UNSCRs against Iraq. Royal Navy vessels continue to make a valuable contribution to the Multinational Interception Force deployed in the Gulf to verify Iraqi compliance with UN sanctions. Royal Air Force aircraft patrol the Iraqi No Fly Zones in support of UN SCR 688, which demanded an end to Saddam's brutal repression of his own people. We also contribute a small contingent of British armed forces personnel to the UN Iraq Kuwait Observer Mission established under UN SCR 687 to monitor the UN defined border and demilitarised zone between Iraq and Kuwait.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Academic Staff

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will estimate the numbers of academic staff on short-term contracts in each university in England and Wales since 1997 (a) in total numbers and (b) as a percentage of total academic staff.

Margaret Hodge: The information requested has been placed in the Libraries.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the EU directives relating to her Department which have been (a) amended and (b) repealed in 2002.

Margaret Hodge: My Department is currently working on legislation to amend the implementing regulations for directive 92/51/EEC. This has arisen out of directive 2001/19/EC which makes various amendments to several European directives relating to recognition of qualifications. The implementation date of directive 2001/19/EC is 1 January 2003.
	No other EU directives have been amended in 2002, and none has been repealed.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the EU directives and regulations that have been implemented through her Department in 2002; and what was the cost of each to public funds.

Margaret Hodge: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 10 April 2002.
	No EU directives or regulations have been implemented through my Department in 2002. There has therefore been no cost to public funds.

Universities

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment she has made of the link between staffing levels and the quality of teaching and research in universities.

Margaret Hodge: The Department has carried out no specific assessment of links between staffing levels and the quality of teaching and research in universities. However, the recently completed QAA eight-year cycle of subject reviews in higher education, which included an assessment of teaching quality, has identified only 1 per cent. of unsatisfactory provision. In addition, the 2001 Research Assessment Exercise showed that 55 per cent. of research staff now work in departments which contain work of international excellence (rated five or five-star) compared with 31 per cent. in the previous exercise in 1996. Staffing levels in higher education have increased by 10 per cent. over the last five years and so have student numbers.

Universities

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on the level of funding provision for the university of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology; and what plans she has to increase funding for UMIST.

Margaret Hodge: The funding of individual institutions is determined by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, which allocated total resources of 36.7 million to the university of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology for the academic year 200102. For the year 200203, it plans to allocate 36.9 million.

Universities

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what her policy is on amalgamation of universities to create centres of academic excellence; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: The Government recognise the importance of having universities able to compete with the best in the world and support higher education institutions in their pursuit of excellence. We will encourage and support universities who wish to choose amalgamation to promote excellence within the constraints of both our powers and availabilities of resources.

Student Statistics

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) full-time and (b) part-time students were in (i) FE and (ii) HE in each of the years 199293 to 200102.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 1 July 2002
	The information is shown in the table.
	
		Number of students on higher and further education coursesEngland
		
			Higher education(18)  Further education(19)  
			   Full-time Part-time Total Full-time Part-time Total 
		
		
			 199293 726,300 425,900 1,188,200 592,000 1,169,400 1,761,400 
			 199394 848,800 453,100 1,301,900 646,300 1,282,800 1,929,100 
			 199495 903,900 515,400 1,419,300 847,100 2,062,900 2,910,000 
			 199596 927,100 567,200 1,494,200 967,900 2,431,800 3,399,700 
			 199697 943,900 589,900 1,533,900 1,019,000 2,783,000 3,802,000 
			 199798 976,800 591,400 1,568,200 979,100 2,788,200 3,767,300 
			 199899 988,400 603,000 1,591,500 961,500 2,700,700 3,662,300 
			 19992000 995,300 614,700 1,610,000 939,300 2,668,800 3,608,100 
			 200001 1,010,200 641,400 1,651,600 922,700 2,748,700 3,671,400 
			 2001/02(20) 1,040,800 650,700 1,691,400 (21) (21) (21) 
		
	
	(18) Census count as at 31 December in years up to 199394, and as at 1 December in subsequent years. Covers all home and overseas students on postgraduate and undergraduate courses, including HE students in FE colleges and the Open University.
	(19) Includes FE students in HE institutions in all years, and sixth form colleges as from 199394. Due to a change in data collection, the figures for FE sector colleges for the years 199495 to 200001 are not comparable with those for earlier years; as from 199495 the figures are based on a whole year count of students, whereas in previous years they are based on a snapshot count at 1 November. As from 199495, includes funded and non-funded students.
	(20) HE figures are provisional.
	(21) Not availablethe whole year count of students in FE sector colleges is collected retrospectively at the end of the academic year.
	Note:
	Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred; components may therefore not sum to totals.

Autistic Children

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many autistic children are statemented in England and Wales;
	(2)  what estimate she has made of changes in the number of autistic children in England and Wales in the past five years.

Margaret Hodge: The information requested is not available centrally.

Autistic Children

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what representations she has received in the past year from parents who have had autistic children placed in mainstream schools against their wishes.

Margaret Hodge: Parents who object to local education authority proposals to place statemented pupils in mainstream schools may appeal to the Special Educational Needs Tribunal. In the current school year the tribunal has received 123 appeals from parents who did not wish their autistic children to be educated in mainstream schools.

Departmental Waste

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of waste produced in her Department was (a) recycled, (b) composted, (c) re-used, broken down into (i) paper, (ii) plastics, (iii) aluminium cans and (iv) other, in each year since 1997; what plans there are to increase the proportions; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Twigg: The table shows the proportions of waste re-used or recycled by the Department in the last two years. No waste was composted. This information was not collected in the form requested prior to the periods shown.
	
		Percentage 
		
			 Waste type 200001(22) 200102(22) 
		
		
			 Paper/cardboard 20.4 17.5 
			 Plastics 0.1 .07 
			 Cans/glass 1.5 .8 
			 Other 3.1 16.2 
		
	
	(22) Percentage of waste re-used or recycled.
	We will continue to monitor developments in waste management, and work with local authority partners and waste service providers to improve these levels.

Higher Education Statistics

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of people aged under 25 years from each socio-economic group participated in higher education in each of the last 12 years.

Margaret Hodge: Information is not available exactly as requested. The available information relates to the social class breakdown of the Age Participation Index (API) from 1990 to 2000, and is shown in the table. The API is defined as the number of UK domiciled under 21 initial entrants to full-time and sandwich courses expressed as a proportion of the averaged 18 to 19-year-old population. The sharp rise in participation rates in the early 1990s reflects the expansion of the higher education sector during these years. There was an increase in entrant numbers in 1997 related partly to the funding arrangements for higher education, with students choosing to enter HE rather than wait until 1998. There was a corresponding reduction in 1998 before the entry rates started to increase again in 1999.
	The Government are committed to raising the participation rates for people from less affluent family backgrounds, and has introduced Excellence Challenge, including the AimHigher campaign, which is targeted at raising attainment and aspirations among young people who traditionally would not consider going to university.
	
		Participation in higher education by social class -- Percentage
		
			   Academic year beginning:  
			 Social class 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 
		
		
			 I Professional (23) 55 71 73 78 80 82 79 72 73 76 
			 II Intermediate (23) 36 39 42 45 46 47 48 45 45 48 
			 IIIN Skilled non manual (23) 22 27 29 31 31 32 31 29 30 33 
			 IIIM Skilled manual (23) 11 15 17 18 18 18 19 18 18 19 
			 IV Partly skilled (23) 10 14 16 17 17 17 18 17 17 19 
			 V Unskilled (23) 6 9 11 11 12 13 14 13 13 14 
			 I to IIIN 37 35 40 43 46 47 48 48 45 45 48 
			 IIIM to V 10 11 14 16 17 17 18 18 17 17 18 
			 All classes 19 23 28 30 32 32 33 33 31 32 33 
		
	
	(23) Not available.

Teachers/Lecturers Pay

Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when she estimates the Government's objective of broad convergence in pay and terms and conditions between school teachers and further education lecturers will be achieved.

Margaret Hodge: We have acknowledged the historic gap between funding in schools and further education (FE) colleges and we have pledged to bring up the levels of support for FE to ensure upward convergence of funding between the two sectors. We will do this over time and as resources allow. However, as independent corporations, it is for each FE college to agree annual pay rises and conditions of employment with its staff in the context of the overall resources available to it.
	We are investing significant funding in the FE sector. An additional 314 million is available for FE this year compared with 200102 and by 200304, total funding for FE will be up by 26 per cent. in real terms since 1997, with total funding per full-time equivalent student up by 16 per cent. over the same period. Separate to any general pay rise a FE lecturer may receive, the Teaching Pay Initiative (TPI) provides 311 million over the period 200104 to reward excellent teaching. The substantial additional investment we are making in the sector should help the FE sector support the pay aspirations of their staff.

AS-Level Examinations

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on the AS-Level examinations; and what changes will be made in the structure of sixth form studies.

Stephen Twigg: holding answer 4 July 2002
	Last September, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced a number of changes to AS-level examinations. The length of some AS examination papers was reduced with most lasting one hour, enabling a complete AS to be taken in half a day. The examination timetable was restructured to reduce clashes and ease the burden of administration of examinations on schools and colleges.
	The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) continue to review Curriculum 2000 reforms and are due to report to Ministers following the summer examination results. We shall carefully consider QCA's recommendations and take necessary actions.

Student Funding

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when she plans to announce the results of her Department's review of student funding; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 4 July 2002
	The review of higher education student funding is still underway. We will make an announcement later this year, when the review is complete.

Pre-schools

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to increase capital expenditure on pre-schools; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 4 July 2002
	We are already making a significant amount of capital funding available for pre-school provision. Over the two financial years 200203 and 200304, the Government are making available 40 million of capital funding for the provision of free nursery education places in disadvantaged areas.
	In addition, up to 100 million of capital funding is available via the New Opportunities Fund in 200104 to create 45,000 child care places in neighbourhood nurseries. Early years settings may qualify to receive this funding by providing wraparound care in addition to sessional care.
	Similarly, 6 million capital grant is available over the financial years 200203 and 200304 to provide modest help to playgroups seeking to develop the services they offer from sessional to daycare.

EU Committees

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when the EU Committee on the second general system for the recognition of professional education and training is next due to meet; whether representatives of the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: There has been just one meeting of the Committee in the last five yearsin November 2001. No further meeting of the Committee is currently scheduled. Membership of the Committee is vested in the UK Co-ordinator for directive 92/51/EEC, who is an official of this Department. Representatives of the Scottish Executive did not attend the meeting in November 2001, but have the opportunity to attend meetings should they wish to do so.

EU Committees

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when the EU Leonardo da Vinci Committee is next due to meet; whether representatives of the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: The Leonardo da Vinci programme management committee is due to meet on 11 and 12 July 2002. Representatives of the Scottish Executive (a) have not been and (b) are not members of this Committee. The UK is represented by officials from the Joint International Unit of the Department for Education and Skills and the Department for Work and Pensions. Representatives of the Scottish Executive participate fully in the National Co-ordination Group which oversees the administration and implementation of the programme in the United Kingdom. These arrangements are in accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding between the UK Government and the devolved Administrations.

University Students (Low Income Families)

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what proportion of university entrants from (a) Jarrow, (b) south-Tyneside, (c) the north-east and (d) the UK were from low income families in 2001;
	(2)  what the proportion of university entrants from low income families was in (a) Jarrow, (b) south Tyneside, (c) the north-east and (d) the UK in each year since 1997.

Margaret Hodge: The available information from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) for students from south Tyneside, the north-east and the UK, is shown in the table. UCAS do not routinely identify students from areas such as Jarrow, which lie within local authorities. The information is based on the social class of the applicants, which will not necessarily equate directly to levels of family income.
	The Government are committed to raising the participation rates for people from less affluent family backgrounds, and has introduced Excellence Challenge, including the AimHigher campaign, which is targeted at raising attainment and aspirations among young people who traditionally would not consider going to university.
	
		Proportion of accepted applicants to full-time and sandwich undergraduate courses who come from skilled manual, partly skilled and unskilled social classes -- Percentage
		
			Home domicile of student:  
			 Year of entry South Tyneside North-east(24) UK 
		
		
			 1997 39 33 28 
			 1998 39 32 28 
			 1999 41 32 28 
			 2000 38 31 28 
			 2001 36 32 28 
		
	
	(24) Covers the following LEAs: North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Newcastle, Sunderland, Gateshead, Durham, Northumberland, Hartlepool, Middlesborough, Stockton, Redcar and Cleveland.

Connexions

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what progress has been made in involving faith communities in the work of Connexions at (a) central and (b) local levels.

Stephen Twigg: One of the principles of the Connexions strategy is to take account of the views of young people both individually and collectively. This includes young people from faith communities and the organisations that represent them. Nationally, the Connexions Service National Unit has discussed and agreed with the Catholic Education Service the basis on which Connexions personal advisers work in Catholic schools and colleges. Locally, Connexions partnerships work with many different voluntary and community groups which support young people, including faith-based organisations. There are examples across the country of faith based organisations being involved in local Connexions management or advisory groups. Some local faith based organisations receive grants from Connexions Partnerships. Organisations with a faith basis also feature prominently among the National Voluntary Youth Organisations (NVYOs) who receive funds from the Department's NVYO Grant Scheme. This is administered by the Connexions Service National Unit to support personal development programmes for young people.

Connexions

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much Connexions (a) spent and (b) transferred to other bodies in the last financial year; and how many members of staff it employs.

Stephen Twigg: In the last financial year (200102) the Connexions Service spent approximately 320 million. Of that, 107 million was incurred by Connexions Partnershipsi.e. those fifteen that were operating during 200102; twelve of which were in place for the full 12 months and three for the last seven months. The remainder was used to support careers services in those areas where Connexions was not operational and to fund central costs such as the training of personal advisers.
	We do not collect information centrally on the exact amount of funding transferred to other bodies, mainly because the variety of different ways in which Partnerships operate makes it impractical to do so. It is for each Connexions Partnership to determine, within broad guidelines, how best to use its funding to meet identified local needs. In some cases this involves sub-contracting work to other organisations such as voluntary and community bodies.
	According to the latest available information (relating to the situation at the end of March 2002), the 15 Connexions Partnerships operational at that time employed 3,933 staffthis includes all staff involved in the delivery of Connexions i.e. delivery staff (mainly personal advisers), managerial and administrative staff, etc.

Connexions

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much funding Connexions receives from Government sources; what non-governmental sources of income Connexions has; how much Connexions disburses to other organisations; and by what mechanisms Connexions makes this money available.

Stephen Twigg: In the current financial year (200203), Connexions has been allocated 446 million from central Government funds. The majority of that funding (ie 359 million) is devolved to Connexions Partnerships through the main Connexions grantthis relates to the 27 partnerships operational at the start of 200203 and the remaining 20 due to become operational during the financial year. The remainder of the overall Connexions budget is used to support careers services in those areas where Connexions is not yet fully operational and to fund central costs such as the training of personal advisers.
	We do not have an exhaustive list of other sources of income but they include the European Social Fund, the National Lottery, the private sector, the Learning and Skills Council and local partners such as local authorities, etc. The strength of Connexions is its ability to pull together the contributions of a range of local partners to eliminate any gaps and duplication in the provision of support for young people. Much of the contribution of local partners is, therefore, of an in-kind nature rather than simply financial.
	We are not yet able to quantify how much funding Connexions partnerships expect to receive in 200203 from sources other than the main Connexions grant. However, in the last financial year (200102), operational Connexions Partnerships received approximately 1.4 million in cash plus an estimated 8 million in contributions in-kind from sources other than the main Connexions grant. Early data from partnerships' business plans show that those figures are expected to be substantially greater this year.
	We do not collect information centrally on the exact amount of funding disbursed to other organisations, mainly because the variety of different ways in which partnerships operate makes it impractical to do so. Once their funding has been allocated to them by DfES, Connexions Partnerships have the flexibility to use it in whatever manner they judge to be the most effective in relation to their local circumstances. In some cases this involves delegating work to partner organisations such as voluntary and community bodies. In those cases, the Connexions Partnership raises a grant or sub-contract with the organisation concerned in order to control the flow of funding.

Connexions

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps have been taken to train Connexions advisers in respect of mental health matters as recommended in the Bridging the Gap report published in July 1999.

Stephen Twigg: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 1 March 2002, Official Report, column 1600W.
	Connexions Partnerships will provide a full service to all young people aged 13 to 19 and will co-ordinate the delivery of appropriate support and opportunities when needed. This includes liaison with key organisations who can provide specialist support in respect of mental health matters.

Oral Questions

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many oral questions she has transferred to other Departments in each of the last 18 months.

Stephen Twigg: Since the election in June 2001 no oral questions were transferred for answer by another Government Department.

Educational Maintenance Allowance

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of young people who received an educational maintenance allowance in each year since 1999 were identified as rural.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 5 July 2002
	We do not ask the local education authorities or schools and colleges who administer the EMA scheme to classify individual recipients as urban or rural.
	However, of the 56 LEA areas in which EMA is paid, six are identified as predominantly rural in character: Cornwall, East Lancashire, Northumberland, North East Lincolnshire, Suffolk and Worcestershire. Cornwall was the only LEA from this list to receive an EMA in 19992000, when there were only 15 pilot areas. The following figures show EMA recipients in these areas as a percentage of the total number of EMA recipients in each of the academic years during which we have run the pilots.
	
		
			  Academic year Percentage of EMA recipients in predominantly rural areas 
		
		
			 19992000 31.3 
			 200001 15.3 
			 200102 14.0

Medical Schools

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the expenditure was on (a) research and (b) teaching in each United Kingdom medical school in the latest year for which figures are available.

Margaret Hodge: Expenditure by higher education institutions, broken down by research and teaching, is not available centrally.
	With the exception of St. George's medical school, medical schools in England form part of their parent university and are funded through the block grant provided by the relevant funding councils for England and the devolved administrations. Once the grant has been allocated, it is for each institution to decide how to spend it.

Medical Schools

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the capital value was of the (a) laboratories, (b) equipment and (c) other assets used for research in each United Kingdom medical school in the latest year for which figures are available.

Margaret Hodge: This information is not available.

London Schools Strategy

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what additional resources will be provided under her Department's new strategy for London schools, broken down by (a) proposed end use and (b) financial year in which it will be spent.

Stephen Twigg: As Minister with responsibility for the London schools strategy, I am looking forward to discussions with key partners about what additional resources should be provided and to what purpose. Provisional plans are:
	7.5 million to expand the training of talented teachers needed to lead and manage the most challenging schools in London; aimed at existing heads, deputies and middle managers (0.5 million in 200203, 3.5 million in 200304, 3.5 million in 200405).
	10.0 million to boost provision for gifted and talented pupils in London establishing centres in 13 LEAs to improve the teaching and learning of gifted pupils and establish a programme of recruiting pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds to the schemes (2.0 million in 200203, 3.9 million in 200304, 4.1 million in 200405).
	5 million for an Innovation Fund to encourage and incentivise new forms of partnership working between successful and less successful schools and the development of new types of secondary school in London (0.5 million in 200203, 2.0 million in 200304, 2.5 million in 200405).
	Up to 2.5 million to fund the work of a London Schools Commissioner to implement the strategy for London schools (0.5 million in 200203, 1.0 million in 200304, 1.0 million in 200405). This will be finalised once precise tasks are clearer.
	These resources will be in addition to other spending on London through the Department's other programmes and funding streams that are subject to the outcome of the spending review.

CABINET OFFICE

Statistics

David Laws: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will list the statistics that are collected by his Department by English parliamentary constituency; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Financial Secretary to the Treasury today at column 769W.

Energy Guidance

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what guidance his office has issued since May 1997 to Government Departments and agencies in relation to (a) energy conservation and energy efficiency and (b) the purchasing of energy from renewable sources; and when the guidance was issued.

Michael Meacher: I have been asked to reply.
	Guidance to the public sector on conserving energy and improving energy efficiency has been provided by the Energy Efficiency Best Practice Programme, and this work is now part of the Carbon Trust's Action Energy scheme. This programme has also provided a range of guidance specifically for the Government Estate and Departments have been supported by site specific visits and consultancy advice.
	The guidance issued by Government on renewable energy purchase was published on 16 January 2001, in HTML format only, and was placed on the Greening Government website (http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/greening/ energy/elec/index.htm)
	Guidance has also been issued to Government by the Office of Government Commerce Buying Solutions in January 2001 entitled 'A one stop shop for energy procurement'.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Consultations

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the public consultations undertaken by his Department since June 2001, stating in each case the (a) number of respondents and (b) percentage of those specifically consulted who responded.

Jane Kennedy: The information is as follows.
	
		
			  Date  Paper  (a) Number of respondents (b) Percentage of those specifically consulted who responded 
		
		
			 28 June 2001 Consultation (under section 85 and section 75 and schedule 9 of the NI Act) on a proposal for a draft Criminal Injuries Compensation Order and Scheme 16 8 
			 August 2001 Consultation paper on the review of Part 1 of the Sex Offenders Act 1997 22 18 
			 20 September 2001 Consultation of Rehabilitation of Offenders (Exceptions) (Amendment) (No. 2) Order (Northern Ireland) 2001 12 3 
			 20 September 2001 Police Trainee Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2001 6 26 
			 March/April 2002 Police Service of Northern Ireland (Recruitment of Police Support Staff) Regulations 2002 3 23 
			 13 March 2002 Draft code on appointment of independent members to the District Policing Partnerships 20 62 
			 28 February 2002 31 May 2002 Consultation on the possible appeal of the Terrorism Act 24 28 
		
	
	Northern Ireland Prison Service Part Input
	Unfortunately there are no centralised records kept at headquarters or at establishment level on consultations with organisations. This information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	Human Rights and Equality Unit
	The Human Rights and Equality Unit have recently published for consultation, the Government's response to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission's review of powers recommendations. Responses are not required until 16 August 2002. Criminal Justice Review Team
	The draft Justice (Northern Ireland) Bill was published for public consultation on 12 November 2001. (a) There were approximately 40 responses from individuals and representatives groups. (b) No groups or individuals were specifically targeted in the consultation.

Departmental Operating Costs

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will break down the operating costs of his Department by relative spending on each specialist (a) unit and (b) programme in each of the last three years.

Jane Kennedy: The information is in the table.
	
		 
		
			  19992000 200001 200102 
		
		
			 Policing 662,000,000 656,000,000 641,760,000 
			 Police Reform 0 39,000,000 68,440,000 
			 Security 17,000,000 22,000,000 23,800,000 
			 Prison Service 138,000,000 235,000,000 110,672,000 
			 Criminal Damage/ Compensation 87,000,000 77,000,000 69,106,000 
			 Criminal Justice 13,000,000 13,835,000 17,024,000 
			 Criminal Justice Reform 761,000 560,000 455,000 
			 Probation Services 10,565,000 11,812,000 12,145,000 
			 Information Services 2,219,000 1,796,000 2,034,000 
			 Grants to voluntary bodies (crime prevention, etc.) 2,579,000 1,794,000 2,333,000 
			 Elections 1,174,000 1,402,000 2,533,000 
			 Legal/Forensics 11,000,000 13,000,000 13,962,000 
			 EU Money 2,000,000 1,000,000 145,000 
			 Bloody Sunday Inquiry 13,000,000 19,000,000 19,179,000 
			 NI Human Rights Commission 572,000 924,000 1,304,000 
			 Central Misc. Services 13,700,000 16,286,000 18,124,000 
			 Political process 14,900,000 11,300,000 8,957,000 
			  
			 Totals 989,470,000 1,121,709,000 1,011,973,000

Castlereagh

Kerry Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on progress in Sir John Chilcott's investigation into the break-in at Castlereagh.

John Reid: I have received a work in progress report from Sir John Chilcott and Colin Smith. I look forward to receiving the full and final report, which is expected later this year.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Sex Offenders

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the supervision of sex offenders living in the community.

Michael Wills: Protecting the public from sexual and violent offenders is one of the Government's highest priorities. The Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000 required each police and probation area to make arrangements to assess and manage the risks posed by sexual and violent offenders in the community. This is built on a range of measures we had already undertaken to strengthen the supervision of sex offenders in the community.

Asylum Policy

Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what changes in the policy of his Department on asylum seekers will stem from the decisions made at the Seville EU summit.

Beverley Hughes: Seville showed that the United Kingdom continues to play a leading role in developing the asylum measures proposed by the Treaty of Amsterdam as a major step towards achieving a common European asylum system. The significant changes in policy envisaged in our Nationality Immigration Asylum (NIA) Bill anticipate the developments we want Seville to deliver.

Asylum Policy

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions his Department has had with the Scotland Office regarding asylum issues.

Beverley Hughes: Discussion is continuing with the Scotland Office and the Scottish Executive on the issue of Asylum Centres for asylum seekers. Asylum, as my hon. Friend is aware, is a reserved matter.

Police Morale

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on police morale.

John Denham: We have turned around the decline in police numbers that started under the last Government. By 31 January this year there were 4,578 more police officers than in March 2000 and police strength was at a record number. We are on course for our target of 130,000 officers by spring 2003.
	We are committed to reducing the burden of unnecessary bureaucracy. We are developing a new occupational health strategy for the police service and we have provided a one-third increase in capital investment this year, which will allow improvements in the conditions in which officers work and the technology that they use.
	We have reached agreement on a package of reforms to police pay and conditions of service that is good for the service, for rank and file officers and for the public.
	We will ensure that officers know and feel that they are valued.

Police Morale

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on police morale.

John Denham: We have turned around the decline in police numbers that started under the last Government. By 31 January this year there were 4,578 more police officers than in March 2000 and police strength was at a record number. We are on course for our target of 130,000 officers by spring 2003.
	We are committed to reducing the burden of unnecessary bureaucracy. We are developing a new occupational health strategy for the police service and we have provided a one-third increase in capital investment this year, which will allow improvements in the conditions in which officers work and the technology that they use.
	We have reached agreement on a package of reforms to police pay and conditions of service that is good for the service, for rank and file officers and for the public.
	We will ensure that officers know and feel that they are
	valued.

National Probation Service

Lawrie Quinn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the role of the National Probation Service in reducing crime.

Hilary Benn: The National Probation Service, together with the Prison Service and the Youth Justice Board are jointly responsible for the target of reducing the level of reconviction of offenders by 5 per cent. by 2004. The Probation Services is working towards this by:
	Careful risk assessment of offenders
	Providing help with accommodation and employment
	Improving basic skills
	Running offending behaviour programmes.
	The Probation Service is also responsible for ensuring that community penalties are effectively enforced.

Prisoner Rehabilitation

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what effect the number of prisoners in England and Wales is having on the provision of rehabilitation schemes in prisons.

Hilary Benn: From 1996 to 2001 the number of offending behaviour programmes successfully completed by prisoners has risen almost fivefold despite a 19 per cent. growth in the prison population over the same period. Last year 16,000 prisoners achieved basic skills certificates, there are no firm indications yet that the number of prisoners is significantly affecting the provision of rehabilitation programmes in prisons. However, it is inevitable that at times of high population pressure such provision may be disrupted. The Prison Service will continue to do everything possible to minimise this.

Prisoner Rehabilitation

Joyce Quin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his policy on constructive regimes in prison to deter re-offending.

Hilary Benn: The Prison Service draws upon research, known as What Works, to ensure an evidence based approach to providing regimes which are effective in tackling offending behaviour and the factors which contribute towards re-offending.
	The Government has set the Prison Service challenging targets to improve its regimes and expand provision of basic skills training, drug treatment, offending behaviour programmes and resettlement activities. To achieve these targets, we are investing an additional 31 million in 200102, 50 million for 200203 and 71 million for 200304. In this way we are supporting the Prison Service in contributing to our target of reducing the rate of re-convictions by offenders punished by imprisonment or by community supervision by five per cent. by April 2004.

Active Community Unit

John McWilliam: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the work of his Department's Active Community Unit.

Michael Wills: The Active Community Unit leads a cross Government effort to promote civil renewal, to encourage active citizenship, and to build constructive partnerships between Government and the voluntary and community sector. It has lead responsibility for the Government's target of making substantial progress towards one million more people being actively involved in their communities by 2004.

Travellers

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will bring forward legislation to increase police powers with regard to the rights of residency of travellers.

John Denham: As we announced last week we intend to bring forward additional eviction powers for police, linked to site provision, to deal with unauthorised camping by Gypsies and Travellers. Proposals will be brought forward as soon as a legislative
	opportunity arises.

Vandalism

Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to assist the police in the fight against low-level crime and vandalism.

John Denham: The Government is taking urgent action to tackle low level crime and vandalism across the country. Among the most important are the measures to enhance the effectiveness of Anti-Social Behaviour Orders in the Police Reform Bill and the introduction of Neighbourhood and Street Wardens to reinforce the capacity of the police and local communities to prevent disorderly behaviour.
	Tackling anti-social behaviour and disorder is one of the Ministerial priorities for the police

Vandalism

Bill O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what additional assistance his Department gives to schools that suffer damage and vandalism; and if he will make a statement.

John Denham: The Government are providing assistance to schools that suffer from vandalism through a range of initiatives including our Neighbourhood Wardens and Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) schemes. The police involvement in truancy sweeps and in the Safer Schools Partnerships scheme is expanding the role that they play in schools as part of the Government's wider initiative to help tackle local street crime and behaviour problems. The Department for Education and Skills has also made 10 million available to Local Education Authorities this year to support security improvements at school that help protect them from crime.

Youth Crime

John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the level of youth crime was in the Vale of Glamorgan in the last year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

John Denham: Information provided by the Vale of Glamorgan Youth Offending Team shows that, in the year 2001, there was a total of 519 recorded offences in its area involving young offenders. Where the age of the offender was known and the case resulted in a reprimand, final warning, referral order or conviction.

Youth Crime

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps his Department is taking to prevent young children committing crimes.

John Denham: The Government are supporting a wide programme to tackle youth offending, including action to prevent children being drawn into crime in the first place. This includes working with families through the Sure Start initiative, neighbourhoods through the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund, and education services through reducing exclusions and improving attendance, as well as implementation of the 10 year drugs strategy.
	We also support a number of preventative programmes including Youth Inclusion Programmes, Splash Schemes and the Positive Futures programme, which help to steer young people, including those identified as being most at risk, away from crime.
	In addition, improvements to the youth justice system, reduced delays, new sentences and programmes, and expanded powers available to the police and courts all help to ensure that we are tackling youth criminality head on.

CS Spray

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many reported incidents involving the use of CS spray by police officers in England and Wales there were in (a) 1996, (b) 1997, (c) 1998, (d) 2000 and (e) 2001; and if he will make a statement.

John Denham: I regret that this information is not available for the majority of police forces in England and Wales. The Association of Chief Police Officers is considering what arrangements should be made to ensure that national statistics are available in future.

Race Relations

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures he proposes to improve race relations and community cohesion.

Beverley Hughes: The Government are committed to making race equality and community cohesion central to their aims.
	We are committed to outlaw discrimination in employment by December 2003 as required by European Employment Directives.
	The Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 came into force on 2 April. It places a general duty on specified public authorities to have due regard to the need to eliminate unlawful discriminationand to promote equality of opportunity and good relations between persons of different racial groups.
	Public bodies were required to have in place by 31 May this year, realistic and timely plans to show how they intend to comply with the general duty.
	The Government are working right across Departments on a number of measures to promote community cohesion. Our aim is to build communities where:
	there is a common vision and a sense of belonging for all people;
	there is an appreciation of people's different backgrounds and circumstances;
	where those from different backgrounds have similar life opportunities; and
	strong and positive relationships are being developed between people from different backgrounds in the work place, in schools and within neighbourhoods.
	Following the disturbances, we rapidly set up a programme of summer activities. This summer, we are running an enhanced programme of activitiesboth on community cohesion and to address issues of street crime. For example, a 16 million summer activities programme run by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) also includes community cohesion criteria alongside other aims.
	We are also engaging young people through other measures. For example, Beyond Labelsan international conference for young people, supported by the Home Office, will take place in Leicester in July.
	We commissioned the Community Cohesion Review Teamchaired by Ted Cantleto explore the causes of last summer's disturbances and the independent report made several, wide-ranging recommendations. The Government published its initial response to the Cantle Report in December last year.
	The recommendations are being taken forward by the Ministerial Group on Community Cohesion, which I chair. The group is advised by a Community Cohesion Panel, chaired by Ted Cantle. The panel comprises people with expertise in relevant areasincluding young people and the community. The Government announced membership of the panel on 22 May 2002.
	A new Community Cohesion Unit has been established to support the Ministerial Group and Paneland to work across Government to deliver community cohesion.
	Community Facilitators are now in place in 34 towns across the country to bring together local people, foster dialogue and encourage the search for positive solutions to local problems. Community Support teams are also being provided to Bradford, Burnley and Oldham, to address community cohesion issues and each town has also produced an outline community cohesion action plan.
	To assist local government address community cohesion issues. The Home Office has publishedjointly with the Commission for Racial Equality, Local Government Association and the Office of the Deputy Prime Ministerdraft guidance for local authorities. This sets out a series of practical steps that they (and other local agencies) can take to address community cohesion issues. A copy of this has been placed in the Library. We are seeking views on it by 14 August.
	The Government believe that community cohesion is an issue that all local authorities need to urgently consider. Some local areas will conclude that their existing policies and community planning systems are satisfactory. But the Government believe that the majority will need to amend some of their policies in order to build effective community cohesion. A small number of areas may identify a wide range of issues which are best addressed by a specific and focused action plan. A number of areas other than Bradford, Oldham and Burnley have already indicated their commitment to developing such plans.

National Security

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to improve the security of the United Kingdom from the intentional release of chemical, biological and radiological materials.

David Blunkett: I keep these matters under close review through my chairmanship of the Ministerial Committees on Terrorism and Civil Contingencies.
	Our crisis management machinery is based on a proven, co-ordinated response capability involving the relevant agencies.
	Following the tragic events of 11 September last year, we have accessed the threat from the use by terrorists of chemical, biological and radiological materials and reviewed our arrangements for dealing with such events. A major cross-departmental programme of work is in hand to enhance the resilience of the UK and counter the threat. Following the Budget on 17 April, I announced additional resources to enable this work to be sustained and developed. This will be further reviewed in the Spending Review.

Anti-Social Behaviour Orders

Laura Moffatt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made in reducing the paperwork required for Anti-Social Behaviour Orders; and if he will make a statement.

John Denham: The recent Home Office review of Anti-Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) found that unnecessary bureaucracy was a problem in some areas. The review recommended that local agencies draw up simple, streamlined protocols designed with the local area in mind and made a number of practical suggestions for minimising bureaucracy and delays. Advice on how best to do this will be included in the new Home Office guidance on ASBOs.

Victim/Witness Protection

Peter Pike: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the protection of victims and witnesses pending court proceedings.

Hilary Benn: Chief officers of police assess whether a witness needs protection pending court proceedings and then put in place measures which are commensurate with the level of risk identified.
	Several communities have established safety schemes to support witnesses and we would like to see more of these. Witness intimidation is an offence and the police have been encouraged to prosecute whenever possible.

Violent Crime (Elderly Victims)

Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the level of violent crime against elderly people.

John Denham: The Government shares the profound revulsion which is caused by crimes against elderly people, and is determined to ensure that even the most vulnerable people can feel safe both in their homes or out in their neighbourhood. The latest British Crime Survey (BCS) published last year does not separately identify the level of violent crime against elderly people. However, the BCS did show that the risk of elderly men becoming victims of violence was less than 0.5 per cent. and that the corresponding risk for women was about 0.6 per cent.

Burglaries

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action is being taken to reduce the number of burglaries.

John Denham: Reducing burglary is being tackled in a number of inter-connected ways. These include:
	Ensuring police forces deliver their best value targetsprogress is being monitored quarterly and, through the Police Standards Unit and Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC), we will be working with those at most risk of not delivering their target to help them get back on track.
	Funding local anti-burglary strategies, initially through the Reducing Burglary Initiative and subsequently through the Safer Communities Initiative.
	Delivering our anti-drugs strategy
	Tackling youth crime
	Delivering our plans to improve the delivery of justice, including bringing more offenders to justice and reducing re-offending.
	Piloting a repeat victimisation model and then rolling out the lessons learned to other areas.
	Negotiating stretched burglary targets in Local Public Service Agreements.
	Targeting crime prevention advice to those known to be at high risk of burglary, such as students.

Police Pay

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has recently received about police pay.

John Denham: The Secretary of State is represented on the Police Negotiating Board (PNB), the statutory negotiating body for police pay and conditions. All the main police organisations are represented on the PNB, including the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), the Association of Police Authorities (APA), the Superintendents' Association and the Police Federation.
	On 9 May 2002, the PNB reached agreement on a recommendation to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for a package of reforms to police pay and conditions. The Secretary of State has approved the PNB recommendation.
	Under the PNB Agreement, all officers in the federated ranks will get an increase in basic salary of 402 from 1 April 2003, on top of the annual police pay award made in September each year.
	In addition, from the same date federated ranks' officers who have spent a year at the top of their pay scales will be eligible for a competence-related payment of 1,002 a year. We expect at least 75 per cent. of those eligible to get the payment. There will also be a new special priority payment scheme, under which officers in qualifying posts will get a payment of between 500 and 3,000 normally, up to 5,000 exceptionally.
	The PNB Agreement also delivers a number of significant improvements in the management and deployment of police officers, including more flexible rostering and use of part-time working as well as better management of ill health and poor attendance.
	The Secretary of State has also received representations from a number of police officers, including the Chief Constable of Thames Valley about the pay and allowances which officers receive.

Special Constables

Adrian Flook: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the number of special constables.

John Denham: Special constables are a key element of our police reform agenda, and we are already working, with stakeholders, to increase the recruitment and retention of special constables as part of that process. Indeed, we announced a package of measures on 18 June that are designed to improve the way specials are recruited, managed, deployed and how their welfare is considered within forces.
	We are particularly keen to improve liaison with employers and encourage them to support employees who are specials. Specials bring skills and experience back to their workplace which makes them of real value as an employee. Later this year the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Home Secretary will publish a joint discussion paper on fiscal and other changes we can make to promote community service, including service as a special constable. A new headline role has also been published, focusing on intelligence-led patrolling and crime reduction initiatives. And a new national foundation training package for specials was issued last month. Revised Conditions of Service Regulations and new Conduct Regulations are in preparation.
	Central to this whole process will be Home Office/Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) good practice guidance covering all aspects of the recruitment, management and deployment of specials, which will be issued by the end of the year. And we will be identifying a number of Specials champions to support this work and to take forward initiatives to help reverse the decline in specials numbers. We have set aside 300,000 to support these champions and we are working very closely with ACPO in this area.

Detainees (Immigration)

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his latest estimate is of the number of persons detained under immigration powers over the past 12 months.

Beverley Hughes: The latest available information on the number of persons detained under Immigration Act powers relates to 30 March 2002. As at that date, 1,575 persons (to the nearest five) were being detained solely under Immigration Act powers.
	I regret that statistics showing the total number of persons detained in the last 12 months could be obtained only at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case records, and no estimate of the total number has been made.
	Information on Immigration Act detainees as at 29 June will be published on 30 August on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.

Accommodation Centres (Children's Education)

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what education provision is given to the children of asylum seekers in accommodation centres; and what improvements he plans to make.

Beverley Hughes: We expect the first trial accommodation centre to open during 2003. We will provide education facilities on site for the children of asylum seekers maintained there. On site education will mirror the provision in mainstream schools, tailored to the specific needs of the children. Education will be evaluated along with other aspects of accommodation centres at the end of the trial period.

Detoxification Centres

James Plaskitt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the availability of places for drug addicts at residential detoxification centres.

Bob Ainsworth: Over 50 per cent. of Drug Action Teams have residential detoxification services located within their area. Figures on the numbers of places available for residential detoxification, however, are not collected centrally.
	There are an estimated 130 residential treatment services in England and Wales (which may or may not include detoxification facilities), which have an estimated 2,169 available beds. This would suggest a possible 8,700 drug and alcohol users could be treated each year.
	Figures from the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS) show that the average waiting times for residential treatment have significantly reduced. The average waiting times for priority cases has been reduced from 5.08 weeks in 200001 to 4.45 weeks in 200102. Non-priority cases waited an average of 9.34 weeks in 200001 improving to 6.44 weeks in 200102.

Clandestine Immigration

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to deal with clandestine immigration.

Beverley Hughes: We are working closely with the French Government to deal with the problem of illegal immigration from France, and the trafficking networks which bring many of these illegal immigrants across Europe. We are committed to the efficient use of intelligence to target resources against organised immigration crimes, and we are investing in new technologies to combat those attempting to enter the United Kingdom clandestinely concealed in road freight vehicles.

Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which individuals are being detained, where and for what reasons, under Part 4 of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001.

David Blunkett: 11 people have been detained to date using powers in Part 4 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001. Of those detained, two have voluntarily left the United Kingdom; the other nine remain in detention. It is long standing practice not to discuss individual cases or the immigration status of individuals, including their place of detention, unless they themselves first choose to do so.

St. Charles Site, Brentwood

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action his Department has taken to secure the land within its ownership in Brentwood, known as St. Charles site, from unauthorised entry.

Hilary Benn: The security arrangements in place include new 2.4 metre high fencing and 24 hour security guarding.
	Following an incident of illegal trespass on 10 May 2002, immediate action was taken to install additional security measures on the Brentwood site. The additional measures, which were installed in consultation with Brentwood borough council and the Essex police, included trenches, earth mounding and other obstructions to entry.

Voluntary Sector

Gary Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for West Dorset, (Mr. Letwin), Official Report, column 704W, on Government funding of the voluntary sector, how Government funding has been defined for the purpose of the estimates; what categories of financial transaction have been excluded from this definition; and on what basis each estimate was made.

Hilary Benn: The definition of Government funding used for the purposes of the estimates is the same as that published in the Report on Central Government Funding of Voluntary and Community Organisations 198283 to 19992000 (annexe B, page 20) ISBN 1 84082 6363, copies of which are available in the Library. No categories of financial transaction were specifically excluded.
	The estimates are based on surveys of Government Departments and other public funders of the voluntary sector conducted by the Charities Aid Foundation on behalf of the Home Office.

Prison Service

Phil Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison officers (a) joined and (b) left the Prison Service in each of the last five years for which figures are available in (i) actual figures and (ii) as a percentage of the total.

Hilary Benn: The information is contained in the table. Officer grades include prison officers, senior officers and principal officers. Joiners information excludes staff who have been re-graded to prison officer from another Prison Service grade.
	
		
			  Prison officers in post at  Joiners  Leavers (including retirements)  
			  beginning of year Number Percentage of total Number Percentage of total 
		
		
			 199798(25) 23,058 1,578 6.8   
			 199899 23,444 1,185 5.1 723 3.1 
			 19992000 23,875 918 3.8 847 3.5 
			 200001 24,090 514 2.1 961 4.0 
			 200102 23,777 363 1.5 1,342 5.6 
		
	
	(25) Reliable information on leavers during 199798 is not available.

Human Trafficking

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures the Government are taking to prevent the trafficking of women in the Balkans and what evaluation he has made of their success; what measures the Government are taking in this regard in co-operation with fellow European Union member states, and what evaluation he has made of their success; what measures have been taken by European Union institutions to combat this trafficking and what evaluation he has made of their success; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: Alongside effective enforcement in the United Kingdom (UK), we have recognised that there is the need to develop intelligence and undertake joint operations against trafficking networks in transit countries in the Balkans region. We have provided a total of 200,000 to fund various local anti-trafficking projects in the Western Balkans region implemented under the auspices of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe's democratisation arm, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights.
	In 2000 we set up Reflex, our multi-agency task force on organised immigration crime, which co-operates with overseas law enforcement partners on the disruption of organised criminal groups intent on trafficking. Led by the National Crime Squad (NCS), Reflex brings together all the key agencies, including the Immigration Service, the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS), the security and intelligence agencies and key police forces including the Metropolitan police, Kent and the British Transport police.
	The UK has posted nine Immigration Liaison Officers to disrupt trafficking and organised immigration crime in and around the Balkans region. European Union (EU) partners have made similar deployments. We co-operate directly or through Europol with EU law enforcement agencies and those in EU accession states. Since April 2001 this has resulted in the disruption of 14 trafficking organisations and 67 arrests. 323 individual facilitators have been arrested.
	Project Immpact, a UK led EU immigration initiative to assist the Bosnia State Border Service, has reduced the flow of illegal migrants through Sarejevo airport by 90 per cent. UK and EU experts assist the anti-trafficking EU STOP teams in Bosnia which have identified 185 victims of trafficking involved in prostitution over the past year.
	We have also provided assistance to the recently established anti-trafficking task force at the South East Europe Co-operation Initiative (SECI) centre in Bucharest, which is focused on cross border co-operation and intelligence sharing between its 11 member states in the Balkan region.
	Belgium and Spain have made organised immigration crime a theme of their EU presidencies. The Danish presidency will promote an EU-wide project against the trafficking of women co-ordinated by the European Police Chiefs Taskforce in the second half of this year.

Commission for Racial Equality

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the budget of the CRE was in 1990; and what it is in the present financial year.

Beverley Hughes: The grant in aid allocated to the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) in the financial year 199091 was 13,500,000 and is 19,900,000 for the current financial year 200203 (both amounts rounded to the nearest 100,000).
	The CRE budget was increased to 3 million from 200203 to enable the Commission to deliver its new responsibilities under the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000.

Communications (Interception)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to introduce legislation relating to the interception of communications and the use of computers which use selected keywords and numbers to determine which communications are intercepted.

David Blunkett: holding answer 2 July 2002
	The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 provides for the lawful interception of communications: there are no plans to amend this legislation.

Communications (Interception)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what controls govern the interception from within the UK of communications originating from outside the UK.

David Blunkett: holding answer 2 July 2002
	The interception of communications is governed by the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. External communications, which are defined by that Act as those sent or received outside the British islands, may be intercepted under a warrant: in particular, section 8(4) of the Act provides for a warrant for the interception of external communications only. The conditions for obtaining such a warrant are set out in sections 58 and 15 of the Act.

Communications (Interception)

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what (a) Departments and (b) organisations are allowed to intercept electronic mail.

David Blunkett: holding answer 3 July 2002
	A warrant for the interception of communications of any kind can only be issued personally by the Secretary of State to those persons specified in section 6(2) of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. Those persons are:
	the Director-General of the Security Service;
	the Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service;
	the Director of Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ);
	the Director-General of the National Criminal Intelligence Service;
	the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis;
	the Chief Constable of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (now the Police Service of Northern Ireland);
	the Chief Constable of any police force maintained under or be virtue of section 1 of the Police (Scotland) Act 1967;
	the Commissioners of Customs and Excise;
	the Chief of Defence Intelligence; and
	a person who, for the purposes of any international mutual assistance agreement, is the competent authority of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom.

Juvenile Offenders

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what extra resources have been made available since 16 April to fund the expected increase of remands into custody of juvenile offenders; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: holding answer 2 July 2002
	53 million has been made available for this year to provide additional juvenile secure places, tagging of juveniles on bail and after release from custody and extension of intensive supervision and surveillance programmes.

Representation Packs

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what average delay was incurred in the last year for which figures are available before prisoners receive representation packs after they are recalled to prison; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: holding answer 2 July 2002
	The Prison Service target for issuing representation packs to determinate sentence prisoners after they have been recalled to prison is five working days. During the 12 month period ending 31 May 2002, 76 per cent. of representation packs were issued within target. Information on the average delay in issuing these packs is not held centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Bail Information Schemes

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many probation areas in England and Wales operate bail information schemes; in how many cases by probation area information on bail was provided to the courts in the last year that figures are available; in how many of these cases the court ordered conditional bail; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: holding answer 2 July 2002
	36 areas operated bail information schemes in 200102, covering some 60 per cent. of magistrates courts in England and Wales. In some areas schemes will have been focused in particular courts rather than delivered as an area-wide service.
	The list of numbers of bail information reports prepared by each area in 2001 is in the table. Bail information reports are only one of the reports available to the court to assist in reaching a decision on whether to order conditional bail in any case and no statistics are collected for the number of such cases.
	The National Probation Directorate is currently reviewing the coverage of bail information schemes to identify the scope for increasing the number of magistrates courts covered by such a scheme and developing performance measures to monitor and improve the quality of the information provided in reports.
	
		Number of bail information reports prepared by the Probation Service during 2001
		
			   Number 
		
		
			 Avon 1 
			 Cambridgeshire 2 
			 Cheshire 1,014 
			 Teesside 111 
			 Cornwall 9 
			 Cumbria 131 
			 Derbyshire 40 
			 Devon 91 
			 Dorset 302 
			 Durham 6 
			 Essex 3 
			 West Mercia 338 
			 Hertfordshire 28 
			 Humberside 634 
			 Kent 181 
			 Lancashire 198 
			 Leicestershire 139 
			 Lincolnshire 37 
			 Greater Manchester 715 
			 Merseyside 306 
			 Norfolk 18 
			 Northumbria 101 
			 Thames Valley 401 
			 Somerset 15 
			 Staffordshire 346 
			 Suffolk 76 
			 Surrey 228 
			 West Sussex 140 
			 Warwickshire 230 
			 West Midlands 1,302 
			 Wiltshire 62 
			 South Yorkshire 403 
			 West Yorkshire 1,991 
			 Dyfed/Powys 191 
			 West Glamorgan 9 
			 Middlesex 71 
			   
			 England and Wales 9,870

Judicial System (Racism)

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is being done to combat racism within the justice system in the United Kingdom.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 3 July 2002
	The Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 is a direct response to the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry. The Government brought forward amendments to the Race Relations Act 1976 to strengthen the duties placed on public authorities. The Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 presents both a challenge and an opportunity to public authorities. So for the first time we have placed a statutory duty on Criminal Justice System organisations to eliminate racial discrimination and also to promote race equality and good race relations when carrying out their functions.
	My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my right hon. and noble Friend the Attorney-General and my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary are responsible for the justice system in England and Wales. We have published Race Equality Schemes setting out how the new duties apply to our Departments and the action we will take to fulfil those duties.
	Information relating to Scotland and Northern Ireland, is a matter for my right hon. Friends the Secretary of State for Scotland and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

Security

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures have been taken in conjunction with other European states to increase security after the events of 11 September 2001.

David Blunkett: holding answer 3 July 2002
	Heads of State and Government of the European Union (EU) endorsed an Action Plan on 21 September, following the terrorist attacks in the United States. The Action Plan sets out agreed decisions on a range of measures to combat global terrorism and to improve practical co-operation among member states. The Action Plan includes:
	Creation of fast-track extradition and an EU arrest warrant, which should significantly reduce obstacles to extradition within EU;
	Agreement on common EU offences and penalties for terrorist activity;
	Setting up a team of EU member states' anti-terrorist experts who can ensure timely collection and analysis of information and intelligence and draft threat assessments;
	Rapid implementation of the United Nations Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism by all EU member states;
	Requirement that the potential impact on the fight against crime and terrorism is fully considered in drafting European Community legislation;
	Measures on freezing of assets and evidence and
	Review of the EU's relations with third countries in the light of their support for counter-terrorism.

Duplicate Passports

Nick Hawkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he plans to take following recent convictions of offenders who had obtained duplicate passports; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 4 July 2002
	The United Kingdom Passport Service has a range of checks in place to prevent and detect passport fraud including a check on the death records of under 18-year-olds in England and Wales. This check is a significant step forward in our efforts to crack down on the fraudulent use of birth certificates. Enhancing its capability to prevent and detect fraud is a business priority for the Passport Service. It is implementing a comprehensive fraud action plan, and is working actively with other agencies to develop its identity validation techniques.

West Mercia Police

Michael Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of police officer recruitment for West Mercia police.

John Denham: Police strength in West Mercia increased by 125 between the end of March 2001 and the end of January this year, when it reached 2,012 officers. The force plans to have record police numbers in the course of 200203.
	The Government's Crime Fighting Fund (CFF) has played a major part in driving up the number of officers. It is enabling forces to take on 9,000 recruits over and above previous plans in the three years to March 2003. In the first two years of this recruitment initiative West Mercia appointed 109 CFF recruits and they will be able to take on a further 43 CFF recruits in 200203.
	Overall, I understand that West Mercia Police Authority's budget will support a planned increase in strength of 300 officers in 200203. I congratulate the police authority and the force in setting itself this goal, which will contribute to our target of 130,000 officers in England and Wales by spring 2003.

Drugs (Prisons)

Angela Watkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent steps he has taken to reduce the amount of illegal drugs in prisons.

Hilary Benn: A range of measures is in place to reduce the smuggling of illegal drugs into prisons. These include:
	passive and active drug dogs;
	low level furniture in visits areas to aid visibility;
	closed circuit television in visits areas;
	an initiative to ban visitors found smuggling drugs into prisons;
	mandatory drug testing of prisoners.

Life Sentences

Paul Stinchcombe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners serving life sentences in England and Wales have served (a) up to five years more than their tariff sentence, (b) five to 10 years more than their tariff sentence, (c) 10 to 15 years more than their tariff sentence and (d) in excess of 15 years more than their tariff sentence.

Hilary Benn: The tariff is the minimum period a life sentence prisoner must serve to meet the requirements of retribution and deterrence before being considered for release. After this minimum period has been served release will only take place where the prisoner is judged no longer a risk of harm to the public.
	The available information in respect of mandatory life sentence prisoners ie those aged over 21 who have been found guilty of murder is as follows:
	(a) up to five years more than the minimum period559,
	(b) five to 10 years more than the minimum period199,
	(c) 10 to 15 years more than the minimum period97 and
	(d) in excess of 15 years more than the minimum period20.
	Such information in respect of non-mandatory life sentence prisonersie those aged under 21 found guilty of murder and those aged over and under 21 who have had a life sentence imposed for an offence other than murderis not held centrally in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost by examining the individual records of the prisoners concerned.

Performance Targets

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the (a) cost and (b) saving has been from the Department's pursuit of Service Delivery Agreement targets in each year since they were introduced.

Beverley Hughes: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 26 June 2002, Official Report, column 1069W.

Performance Targets

Chris Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many performance targets he has set for his Department; and how many that were included last year have been dropped this year.

Beverley Hughes: The Home Office Public Service Agreement states the Department's key targets for this year. The Service Delivery Agreement targets underpin them. These targets are set over the period 200104 and therefore the targets set last year are still valid. New targets for the Home Office are currently being discussed as a result of the Spending Review 2002 process. These will commence from April 2003.
	Additional targets are set out in the Home Office's Business Plan. This was published on 13 June as a combined document with the annual report. All our targets for the coming year are outlined in this document as are last year's targets and whether they have been achieved or are on-going.

Remploy

Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the value is of Remploy products purchased by his Department in each year since 1995.

Beverley Hughes: The value of Remploy products purchased by the Home Department since 1995 are as follows:
	
		 
		
			  Value of Remploy products purchased 
		
		
			 1995 41,700 
			 1996 16,979 
			 1997 20,207 
			 1998 17,044 
			 1999 1,508 
			 2000 2,168 
			 2001 3,406 
		
	
	The number of purchases have declined because of a change of focus within Remploy's activities towards production associated with education. As a result, Remploy were not able to guarantee service requirements by our main purchaser centrex.

Criminal Records Checks

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many questions are asked by the Criminal Records Office of those for whom criminal records checks in connection with work with children are sought; and of those which are essential to the conduct of a check.

Hilary Benn: holding answer 24 July 2002
	The Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) Disclosure Application form has a total of 42 questions, 25 of which are considered essential to enable the CRB to undertake the necessary checks. The remaining questions are asked to enable the CRB to process applications more quickly, or relate to referee details that, in some circumstances, the CRB may need to contact for additional details.
	Applicants can apply for a Disclosure either by completing and posting an application form, or over the phone. The telephone operator will ask a minimum of six questions, (to establish contact details), and applicants then have the option of supplying almost all of the information required for the form over the telephone.

Criminal Records Checks

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what average length of time it takes for a check to be made at the Criminal Records Bureau.

Hilary Benn: The Criminal Records Bureau is not meeting its Disclosure Application processing service standards. At present these are taking five to six weeks and this applies to both 'standard' and enhanced Disclosures.
	To address this, the bureau has introduced a performance improvement plan. This should ensure that, over the coming weeks, service levels will improve steadily until the full service standards are met.

Terrorism (Overseas Students)

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements are in place to monitor the activities of overseas students in the UK to ascertain whether they have become involved in organisations proscribed under the Terrorism Act 2001; and if he will make a statement.

David Blunkett: The police and security services attach the highest priority to the monitoring of organisations proscribed under the Terrorism Act 2000.
	Individuals, including overseas students, who are members or supporters of these organisations will be investigated and appropriate action taken.

Terrorism (Overseas Students)

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements he makes to screen individuals applying from overseas to study in the UK for connections to proscribed organisations under the Terrorism Act 2001; and if he will make a statement.

David Blunkett: There are mechanisms in place to identify individuals seeking to enter the United Kingdom who are members or supporters of terrorist organisations. It is not in the public interest to publish details of these mechanisms.

Interior Minister for Greece

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he last met the Interior Minister for Greece.

David Blunkett: I have not met the Interior Minister for Greece. I have, however, had a bilateral with Mr. Michalis Chrysohoides, Greek Public Order Minister, on 24 January this year in London. As we approach the Greek Presidency of the European Union, I intend to meet Greek Ministers responsible for Justice and Home Affairs.

Annual Leave

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average annual leave entitlement is for staff in his Department in 2002.

Beverley Hughes: Due to fluctuating numbers in each grade information on average annual leave entitlements could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The current leave entitlement for staff in the Home Office and its Agencies is as follows:
	
		
			  Leave entitlement 
		
		
			  Non-agency Home Office i.e. excluding the Prison Service, Passport and Records Agency and Forensic Science Service 
			 Band A Grades up to and including Higher Executive Officer and equivalents: 22 days on entry, 25 days after one year's service and 30 days after 13 years. 
			 Band B Grades above Higher Executive Officer, up to and including Grade 6 and equivalents: 25 days on entry and 30 days after 10 years' service. 
			   
			 Prison Service  
			 Band A Prison Officers: 22 days on entry, 25 days annual leave after one year's service and 30 days after 18 years. 
			 Band B Generalist grades up to and including Manager 'E' and equivalents. 25 days on entry and 30 days after 16 years service (from 1 March 2002). 
			 Band C Generalist grades Senior Manager DA and above or equivalents. 30 days on entry which does not increase. 
			   
			 Passport and Records Agency  
			 One band All staff receive 25 days on entry and 30 days after 10 years' service. 
			   
			 Forensic Science Service  
			 Band A Grades up to and including Higher Executive Officer and equivalents: 22 days on entry, 25 days after one year's service and 30 days after 10 years. 
			 Band B Grades above Higher Executive Officer, up to and including Grade 6 and equivalents: 25 days on entry and 30 days after 10 years' service. 
		
	
	There have been a number of changes over the last four years to the annual leave entitlements of staff in the above bands. These have all primarily been aimed at reducing the qualifying period for the maximum leave allowance of 30 days.
	Senior Civil Service
	The annual leave entitlement for staff in the Senior Civil Service is set centrally by the Cabinet Office and is currently 30 days.

Brixton Prison

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prison officers have been transferred out of Brixton compulsorily since 1996.

Hilary Benn: I will write to my hon. Friend shortly with a detailed answer.

Brixton Prison

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the population is of HMP Brixton; and how many of those prisoners are Irish nationals.

Hilary Benn: On 27 June 2002 the population of Brixton prison was 752. Of those prisoners 30 are Irish nationals.

Prison Recalls

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals during the last 12 months had their licence revoked and were recalled to prisons in England and Wales.

Hilary Benn: During the 12-month period ending 31 May 2002, 4,773 determinate prisoners and 19 life sentence prisoners were recalled to prison using the Secretary of State's powers to revoke a prisoner's licence pursuant to sections 38(a)(1) and 39 of the Criminal Justice Act 1991.
	Prisoners serving a sentence of less than four years and who committed their earliest offence prior to 1 January 1999 or who were released on a statutory notice of supervision can only be recalled by the courts.

Prison Recalls

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average delay incurred was before prisoners received representation packs after they were recalled to prison in the last 12 months.

Hilary Benn: The Prison Service target for issuing representation packs to determinate sentence prisoners after they have been recalled to prison is five working days. During the 12 month period ending 31 May 2002, 76 per cent. of representation packs were issued within target. Information on the average delay in issuing these packs is not held centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Prisons

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many new prisons have been built since 1997; and how many have had buildings modernised.

Hilary Benn: holding answer 4 July 2002
	Since 1997, eight new prisons have been built and opened which are:
	
		
			 Year New prisons  
		
		
			 1997 Altcourse Liverpool, Merseyside 
			 1997 Parc Bridgend, Mid Glamorgan 
			 1998 Lowdham Nottingham 
			 1999 Weare(26) Portland, Dorset 
			 2000 Forest Bank Manchester 
			 2000 Ashfield Bristol, Avon 
			 2000 Dovergate Uttoxeter, Staffordshire 
			 2001 Rye Hill Rugby, Warwickshire 
		
	
	(26) Floating facility
	Since 1997, the Prison Service has built new accommodation blocks at: Acklington, Ashwell, Aylesbury, Bullingdon, Bullwood Hall, Castington, Deerbolt, Downview, Eastwood Park, Elmley, Erlestoke, Foston Hall, Frankland, Garth, Guys Marsh, Highpoint, Holme House, Huntercombe, Kirklevington, Littlehey, Long Lartin, Moorland, Mount, New Hall, Nottingham, Norwich, Onley, Ranby, Send, Spring Hill, Stocken, Stoke Heath, Styal, Swaleside, Swinfen Hall, Wayland, Wealstun, Wellingborough, Werrington and Wetherby. Projects in progress not included.
	Since 1997, the Prison Service has modernised accommodation in the form of refurbishments or replacements at: Aylesbury, Brixton, Camp Hill, Canterbury, Cardiff, Castington, Feltham, Haverigg, Kingston, Kirkham, Leeds, Lewes, Lincoln, Parkhurst, Pentonville, Stoke Heath, Wakefield, Wandsworth and Wormwood Scrubs. Projects in progress not included.

PRIME MINISTER

The Dome

Tim Yeo: To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the (a) Departments and (b) Ministers with responsibility for (i) the Millennium Dome and (ii) the Millennium Experience since 2 May 1997.

Tony Blair: The Department of National Heritage, renamed the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in July 1997, was responsible for the Dome until the end of June 2001, when responsibility was passed to the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions. In May 2002, responsibility was transferred to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister under machinery of Government changes.
	The Department of National Heritage, renamed the Department for Culture Media and Sport in July 1997, has been the Department responsible for the New Millennium Experience Company, which built the Dome and operated the Millennium Experience, since 2 May 1997.
	The Ministers with responsibility for the New Millennium Experience Company and the Dome since 2 May 1997 have been as follows. My right hon. Friend the Member for Islington, South and Finsbury (Mr. Smith) was responsible, in a caretaker role, from May to July 1997, when responsibility was transferred to the right hon. Member for Hartlepool (Mr. Mandelson). Responsibility was transferred from Peter Mandelson back to Chris Smith, again in a caretaker role, in December 1998. In January 1999, responsibility was transferred to Lord Falconer of Thoroton QC. Pending final decisions on the allocation of ministerial portfolios in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, Lord Rooker is dealing with policy issues related to the Dome, while responsibility for the New Millennium Experience Company will also transfer to a Minister in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in accordance with the established procedures in due course.

Ministerial Design Champions Group

Debra Shipley: To ask the Prime Minister who the chairman is of the Ministerial Design Champions Group.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to her by my hon. Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at Culture, Media and Sport today.

Poppy Growing (Afghanistan)

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his oral statement of 1 July on the G8 summit, what the detailed steps were that were discussed at the G8 summit to combat poppy growing in Afghanistan.

Tony Blair: The G8 discussed the UK's Anti-narcotics Strategy Paper and Action Plans for Afghanistan which concentrates on four key areas to combat poppy growing: law enforcement, provision of alternative livelihoods, institution building and demand reduction. Agreement was reached that the G8 would step up efforts to assist the Afghan Government in combating this menace in order to eradicate opium production in Afghanistan.
	A copy of the Strategy Paper and Action Plans will be placed in the House of Commons Library.

Heroin and Cocaine

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his oral statement of 1 July on the G8 Summit, what measures are being taken in heroin and cocaine producing states to stop production of raw material and to prevent their products from leaving the country.

Tony Blair: The UK is leading the co-ordination of international anti-narcotics assistance to Afghanistan (which is the source of 90 per cent. of the heroin consumed in the UK). This involves working with international partners and organisations to build law enforcement capacity in Afghanistan to interdict opiates and undermine those criminal organisations engaged in drug trafficking. The international effort is also directed towards eradicating opium poppy and creating alternative livelihoods for Afghan opium farmers.
	The UK has also sought to assist drug interdiction efforts of Afghanistan's neighbours. The FCO's Drugs and Crime Fund provided anti-narcotics assistance of around 1.5 million in 200001 to Iran, Pakistan and the Central Asian Republics. We have also provided assistance to Balkan countries through which heroin is trafficked from Afghanistan.
	Colombia, Peru and Bolivia together produce virtually all of the world's cocaine. The UK is working closely with the Governments of each of these states to tackle the problem by supporting projects to build local law enforcement capability. Current projects include the provision of training and equipment in all three countries.

The Queen Mother

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Prime Minister which Minister authorised the making of the complaint to the Press Complaints Commission concerning reports on the Lying in State of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother; and which Minister authorised its subsequent withdrawal.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the statement I made on 14 June, a copy of which was placed in the Library of the House.

Ministerial Travel

Andrew Turner: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  how many times he has travelled on official business by air within Great Britain since June 2001;
	(2)  pursuant to his answer of 1 July 2002, Official Report, column 81W, on official visits, on how many occasions he has travelled by rail on official business since June 2001;
	(3)  what information and records, including mode of travel, he has kept on his official visits since June 2001.

Tony Blair: I travel making the most efficient and cost-effective arrangements. My travel arrangements are in accordance with the arrangements for official travel set out in chapter 7 of the Ministerial Code, and the accompanying guidance document, Travel by Ministers.
	My office keeps records of my home and overseas travel. Since June 2001, I have made 33 journeys by air and eight by train. A judgment is always made about what is the most appropriate form of travel in the time available.

Street Crime

Alan Beith: To ask the Prime Minister whether he has given responsibilities to Ministers other than the Home Office Ministers to monitor and receive reports from chief constables on the subject of street crime.

Tony Blair: The street crime initiative involves a wide range of Government Departments tackling street crime with a co-ordinated programme of action. Each of these Departments along with representatives from the Police Service, magistrates and local government is represented on the Street Crime Action Group which I chair.
	The Street Crime Action Group agreed that it would be helpful for individual Ministers from each of these Departments to visit the 10 target areas to give encouragement to local agencies and promote a shared approach at local as well as national level. I have asked the following Ministers to act as sponsors for the street crime initiative:
	The right hon. Baroness BlackstoneAvon and Somerset
	Hazel BlearsLancashire
	Yvette CooperMerseyside
	John DenhamLondon
	The right hon. Lord FalconerGreater Manchester
	The right hon. Harriet Harman QCWest Yorkshire
	Ruth KellyNottinghamshire
	Barbara RocheThames Valley
	The right hon. Lord RookerWest Midlands
	Stephen TwiggSouth Yorkshire.
	Data which were already being collected from a range of local agencies including the police and other criminal justice organisations are being copied to them for information.

Meteor Missile Project

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Prime Minister what representations he has received from the German Government concerning the future of the Meteor missile project; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the reply he received from my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Dr. Moonie) on 3 July 2002, Official Report, columns 32021W.

Falklands

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Prime Minister what events he has attended this year to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Falklands conflict.

Tony Blair: My right hon. Friend, the Minister for the Armed Forces attended the ceremonies in Stanley to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Falklands conflict on my behalf. I also sent a radio message to the people of the Falkland Islands on the anniversary of the end of the conflict, in which I made clear that the sovereignty, security and right of self- determination of the Falkland Islands and its people are not open to negotiation or compromise.

Statistics

David Laws: To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the statistics that are collected by his Department by English parliamentary constituency; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my hon. Friend, the Financial Secretary today at column 769W.

No. 10 Downing Street

David Laws: To ask the Prime Minister what refurbishment and repair work is planned for No. 10 Downing street in (a) 200203 and (b) 200304; what the estimated cost is; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Blair: As my official spokesman has made clear, routine maintenance to the grade 1 listed building will be taking place and the precise costings have not yet been completed. Work will be carried out in numbers 10, 11 and 12. Invoices for the work will be paid in the normal way.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Benefits

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many successful appeals there have been against suspension of benefits in (a) Angus and (b) Scotland in each of the last five years.

Nick Brown: Decisions on suspending payment of benefit are discretionary. There is no formal procedure for revising such decisions and there is no right of appeal against them. However, they can be changed in the light of any relevant new evidence or information submitted to the Department.

Benefits

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what criteria are used by officers at the local offices of the Department in deciding on suspension of benefits.
	(2)  how many people who have had benefits suspended in the last five years in (a) the Angus constituency and (b) Scotland have had them reinstated following investigation.
	(3)  if he will provide a breakdown of the reasons for suspension of benefits in (a) the Angus constituency and (b) Scotland in each of the last five years.
	(4)  how many suspensions of benefits were reversed following evidence of the medical condition of the applicant in (a) the Angus constituency and (b) Scotland in each of the last five years;
	(5)  how many claimants had their benefits suspended in (a) the Angus constituency and (b) Scotland in each of the last five years.
	(6)  what the average time taken to re-instate benefits following suspension was in (a) the Angus constituency and (b) Scotland in each of the last five years.
	(7)  if he will provide a breakdown of the type of benefit suspended in each of the last five years in (a) the Angus constituency and (b) Scotland.

Nick Brown: It is a long-standing principle that people receiving benefit have a responsibility to confirm their continuing entitlement on a periodic basis. Where a person may have failed to meet that obligation, it is right that payment of benefit should be suspended.
	Benefit may be suspended in whole or in part and the suspension continues until the decision maker is able to make a substantive decision on entitlement. If the substantive decision results in no entitlement or a reduced entitlement, the fact that payments have been suspended means that an overpayment is avoided. If the doubt is resolved in a person's favour, payments are restored and arrears paid. Decisions on suspending payment of benefit are discretionary. There is no formal procedure for revising such decisions, but they can be changed in the light of any relevant new evidence or information submitted to the Department.
	The Suspension and Termination Guide sets out the guidance for those who take decisions on suspending payment of benefit, and includes advice about the criteria to be applied. A copy has been placed in the Library.
	No information is collected centrally on benefit suspensions.

Benefits

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the effect on those whose benefit has been suspended in full for failing to keep an appointment at Jobcentres from the time of suspension to reinstatement of benefits;
	(2)  if he will introduce a sliding scale of penalties, short of immediate suspension of benefit, for those who have failed to adhere to provisions relating to appointments at Jobcentres;
	(3)  how many claimants, broken down by age group, have had benefits suspended in (a) the Angus constituency and (b) Scotland in each of the last five years for failing to keep an appointment at a Jobcentre;
	(4)  what guidance has been given to local Jobcentres on the suspension of benefits from those who fail to keep appointments.

Nick Brown: It is a long-standing principle that people claiming jobseeker's allowance have a responsibility to confirm their continuing entitlement to benefit by attending the Jobcentre fortnightly and also by keeping other appointments arranged to help with their job search. Where a person may have failed to meet those obligations, it is right that payment of benefit should be suspended.
	When making a decision about suspending benefit, staff in Jobcentres have access to the Suspension and Termination Guide for Decision Makers and the Labour Market Conditions Guide which gives advice on procedures. This advises that where someone has failed to attend an appointment, benefit should be suspended at the end of that day. The person may then contact the office within five days to show good cause for failing to attend. Examples of good cause include domestic emergencies, attending a job interview or illness. If good cause is demonstrated, then the suspension is lifted and payment made. If not, then the claim is terminated from the day of non-attendance.
	No departmental research has been undertaken on suspensions of benefit and no information is collected centrally on the number of people who have had their benefit suspended.
	We keep all our policies under review. However, we have no plans to change the current arrangements under which benefit can be suspended.

Benefits

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many persons in receipt of (a) disability living allowance, (b) incapacity benefit and (c) carer's allowance in (i) Angus and (ii) Scotland have also been in receipt of housing benefit in each of the last five years.

Malcolm Wicks: Information is not available in the format requested. The available information for Housing Benefit recipients in Scotland for each of the last five years is in the tables. The samples on which this information is based are too small to provide reliable figures for individual constituencies.
	
		Housing benefit recipients in Scotland who also received either disability living allowance, incapacity benefit or invalid care allowance in May of each year from 1996 to 2000
		
			   Recipients with  
			 May Disability living allowance Incapacity benefit Invalid care allowance 
		
		
			 1996 62,000 74,000 15,000 
			 1997 72,000 70,000 14,000 
			 1998 78,000 72,000 15,000 
			 1999 79,000 72,000 16,000 
			 2000 82,000 66,000 17,000 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest thousand and include cases where the partner of the recipient of housing benefit also receives the relevant other benefit.
	2. Individuals can receive housing benefit, disability living allowance and incapacity benefit and such cases will be recorded twice in the table. The figures in the columns should accordingly not be added together.
	Source:
	Housing Benefit Management Information System, annual 1 per cent. sample.

Housing Benefit

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average payment to a landlord in respect of housing benefit for a one-bedroom property was in (a) Angus, (b) Edinburgh, (c) Glasgow, (d) Aberdeen, (e) Dundee, (f) Newcastle, (g) Leeds and (h) London in each of the last five years.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is not available.

Housing Benefit

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the total cost was of housing benefit paid in (a) Angus and (b) Scotland in each of the last five years.

Malcolm Wicks: The available information is in the table.
	
		Housing benefit expenditure -- ( millions)
		
			  Angus Scotland 
		
		
			 199596 (27) 907 
			 199697 10 967 
			 199798 12 1,014 
			 199899 13 1,039 
			 19992000 14 1,054 
		
	
	(27) Not available.
	Notes:
	1. Data for Angus relate to the Angus council area. This unitary authority was created on 1 April 1996 and comparable data are not available for the previous year.
	2. Figures are rounded to the nearest  million.
	3. Figures are consistent with those published in the Chancellor's Budget Report, April 2002.
	Source:
	Final audit returns made by local authorities to DWP.

Benefit Payments

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many persons in receipt of retirement pension, in each parliamentary constituency in (a) Scotland and (b) Wales receive payment of their benefits (i) directly into their bank accounts and (ii) through local sub-post offices.

Ian McCartney: The table sets out information on how retirement pensioners in parliamentary constituencies in Wales and Scotland are paid. It is not possible to say exactly how many people receive their payments at a post office because some people choose to pay a girocheque directly into a bank/building society account.
	The information supplied is a snapshot during September 2001 and separates payments made by order book and girocheque, which are normally cashed at Post Offices, and payments made directly into bank/building society accounts by means of automated credit transfer (ACT).
	
		RP cases by method of payment and parliamentary constituency -- Thousands
		
			 September 2001 All Can be cashed at the post office Paid by ACT 
		
		
			 Wales 564.0 396.9 167.0 
			 Aberavon 13.3 10.7 2.6 
			 Alyn and Deeside 13.1 8.1 4.9 
			 Blaenau Gwent 12.9 10.5 2.4 
			 Brecon and Radnorshire 14.7 9.4 5.3 
			 Bridgend 15.3 10.5 4.8 
			 Caernarfon 13.6 9.8 3.7 
			 Caerphilly 13.7 10.5 3.1 
			 Cardiff Central 14.8 9.2 5.6 
			 Cardiff North 12.0 7.3 4.8 
			 Cardiff South and Penarth 14.7 10.3 4.5 
			 Cardiff West 13.2 9.0 4.2 
			 Carmarthen East and Dinefwr 15.2 11.4 3.9 
			 Carmarthen West and South 15.2 10.0 5.3 
			 Pembrokeshire
			 Ceredigion 14.8 8.9 5.9 
			 Clwyd South 12.4 9.2 3.3 
			 Clwyd West 18.6 11.0 7.6 
			 Conwy 15.9 10.0 5.9 
			 Cynon Valley 11.8 9.8 1.9 
			 Delyn 12.6 7.4 5.1 
			 Gower 16.2 10.9 5.3 
			 Islwyn 12.3 10.3 2.0 
			 Llanelli 16.1 13.3 2.9 
			 Meirionnydd Nant Conwy 10.9 7.3 3.6 
			 Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney 12.0 10.3 1.8 
			 Monmouth 17.8 10.1 7.7 
			 Montgomeryshire 11.5 7.8 3.8 
			 Neath 13.8 11.3 2.5 
			 Newport East 13.9 9.5 4.5 
			 Newport West 14.0 9.5 4.5 
			 Ogmore 11.3 9.3 2.1 
			 Pontypridd 13.9 10.5 3.4 
			 Preseli Pembrokeshire 14.9 9.4 5.5 
			 Rhondda 14.8 12.9 1.9 
			 Swansea East 14.0 11.4 2.6 
			 Swansea West 15.9 11.2 4.7 
			 Torfaen 13.6 10.3 3.3 
			 Vale of Clwyd 15.8 10.4 5.4 
			 Vale of Glamorgan 17.2 10.5 6.7 
			 Wrexham 11.7 7.8 3.9 
			 Ynys Mon 14.5 9.9 4.6 
			 
			 Scotland 911.9 570.3 340.8 
			 Aberdeen Central 11.4 6.8 4.5 
			 Aberdeen North 10.8 6.6 4.3 
			 Aberdeen South 14.2 7.4 6.9 
			 Airdrie and Shotts 11.9 9.0 2.8 
			 Angus 15.5 8.9 6.6 
			 Argyll and Bute 13.6 7.8 5.8 
			 Ayr 15.4 8.9 6.5 
			 Banff and Buchan 13.2 9.0 4.2 
			 Caithness Sutherland and Easter Ross 10.4 6.4 3.9 
			 Carrick Cumnock and Doon Valley 15.6 10.9 4.7 
			 Central Fife 13.7 9.0 4.7 
			 Clydebank and Milngavie 13.6 7.9 5.7 
			 Clydesdale 14.8 9.8 5.1 
			 Coatbridge and Chryston 11.3 8.9 2.4 
			 Cumbernauld and Kilsyth 8.9 5.9 3.0 
			 Cunninghame North 14.4 8.6 5.8 
			 Cunninghame South 10.3 7.2 3.1 
			 Dumbarton 12.4 7.7 4.8 
			 Dumfries 15.8 9.1 6.7 
			 Dundee East 15.5 10.1 5.4 
			 Dundee West 12.7 8.4 4.3 
			 Dunfermline East 11.4 8.2 3.2 
			 Dunfermline West 11.3 7.5 3.8 
			 East Kilbride 15.3 8.7 6.6 
			 East Lothian 15.4 9.0 6.3 
			 Eastwood 17.0 7.6 9.3 
			 Edinburgh Central 11.3 6.6 4.7 
			 Edinburgh East and Musselburgh 13.5 8.5 4.9 
			 Edinburgh North and Leigh 10.9 6.3 4.6 
			 Edinburgh Pentlands 12.7 5.8 6.9 
			 Edinburgh South 13.5 7.6 5.8 
			 Edinburgh West 15.7 6.7 9.0 
			 Falkirk East 13.1 8.7 4.4 
			 Falkirk West 12.4 7.9 4.4 
			 Galloway and Upper Nithsdale 15.2 8.7 6.5 
			 Glasgow Anniesland 13.8 9.5 4.3 
			 Glasgow Baillieston 10.1 7.9 2.2 
			 Glasgow Cathcart 11.4 7.3 4.1 
			 Glasgow Govan 8.5 6.2 2.3 
			 Glasgow Kelvin 9.4 6.7 2.7 
			 Glasgow Maryhill 9.9 8.0 1.9 
			 Glasgow Pollok 12.9 9.7 3.1 
			 Glasgow Rutherglen 12.8 9.0 3.8 
			 Glasgow Shettleston 10.4 9.2 1.2 
			 Glasgow Springburn 11.7 9.7 2.0 
			 Gordon 13.0 7.5 5.6 
			 Greenock and Inverclyde 13.0 8.8 4.1 
			 Hamilton North and Bellshill 9.5 7.3 2.2 
			 Hamilton South 9.9 7.3 2.6 
			 Inverness East Nairn and Lochaber 16.6 8.8 7.9 
			 Kilmarnock and Loudoun 15.7 10.5 5.2 
			 Kirkcaldy 12.9 8.6 4.3 
			 Linlithgow 11.1 7.2 3.8 
			 Livingston 10.3 6.6 3.7 
			 Midlothian 11.1 7.1 4.0 
			 Moray 13.9 8.1 5.8 
			 Motherwell and Wishaw 13.2 10.2 3.0 
			 North East Fife 14.8 7.9 6.9 
			 North Tayside 17.3 9.4 7.9 
			 Ochil 11.8 7.0 4.8 
			 Orkney and Shetland 7.6 4.9 2.7 
			 Paisley North 11.2 7.7 3.5 
			 Paisley South 13.0 8.9 4.1 
			 Perth 16.0 8.2 7.8 
			 Ross Skye and Inverness West 13.4 7.9 5.5 
			 Roxburgh and Berwickshire 13.3 7.8 5.5 
			 Stirling 12.7 6.8 5.9 
			 Strathkelvin and Bearsden 13.9 6.4 7.4 
			 Tweeddale Ettrick and Lauderdale 12.6 6.4 6.3 
			 West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine 12.5 6.5 6.0 
			 West Renfrewshire 11.1 6.9 4.1 
			 Western Isles 5.1 4.2 1.0

State Earnings-related Pension Scheme

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many letters have been issued to those people who will be affected by the reduction in SERPS on the sliding scale; and on what basis those people were identified.

Ian McCartney: Up to and including 27 May 2002, 2,907,190 letters have been sent to people who will be affected by the reduction in SERPS on the sliding scale.
	People were identified from their date of birth held on the National Insurance Recording System (NIRS2).

Older People

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he will (a) assume the title of champion for older people and (b) chair the Cabinet Sub-Committee on Older People.

Ian McCartney: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions looks forward to taking up the title of champion for older people. My right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister will publish a list of Cabinet Committees and their membership shortly.

Compensation Recovery Unit

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the administrative cost of the coal section of the Compensation Recovery Unit was in 2001.

Maria Eagle: The administrative cost to the Compensation Recovery Unit of processing miners' compensation cases during the financial year 200102 was 1,171,497. The total amount recovered in the same period was 15,424,590.

New Deal (Ambition)

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the answer of 12 November 2001, Official Report, column 570W, how many participants in the New Deal have received training through Ambition IT Initiative since January.

Nick Brown: The Ambition initiatives are demand-led, and are aimed at training disadvantaged people for good quality jobs. The availability of jobs is key to their success. In the latter part of 2001 there was a reduction in the global workforce in the IT sector as a number of key companies scaled down their operations. At the same time, a number of American companies which employ people in the UK froze recruitment as a result of the events of 11 September. The Ambition:IT initiative was consequently put on hold in December 2001 so that the Department could conduct a review of the skills requirements of the IT sector in the UK.
	The review has concluded that the demand for people with IT skills is now most acute in the public sector. The programme has therefore been refocused on this sector and we now expect to start new deal participants in training from this autumn.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list the EU directives and regulations that have been implemented through his Department in 2002; and what was the cost of each to public funds.

Maria Eagle: None.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if she will list the EU directives relating to her Department which have been (a) amended and (b) repealed in 2002.

Maria Eagle: I have been asked to reply.
	None.

Winter Fuel Payments

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of claim forms issued to men aged over 60 years who were potentially eligible for winter fuel payments were returned by 30 March; how many of those claims proved well founded; and what extra steps he is taking to advise men aged over 60 years of potential eligibility in winter 2002.

Ian McCartney: The information is not held in the format requested, However in the 200102 winter, the total number of claim forms issued was 285,431. The number of claim forms returned, by 30 March, was 223,927. Of these, 172,281 were successful. A significant number of people who requested claim forms could have become entitled to the winter fuel payment without the need for them to submit a claim and would have been paid automatically.
	This year, as in previous years, we will run an information campaign to inform everyone aged 60 and over about winter fuel payments. The campaign for winter 2002 will run until the end of March 2003.

Pensions

Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to consult the National Pensioners Convention before submitting the national strategic report on pensions to the European Council.

Ian McCartney: The National Pensioners Convention is one of a number of organisations invited to a meeting with the Department in July concerning the National Strategy Report, which will be the UK's contribution to the exchange of information between member states agreed by the European Council.

Mental Health

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to his answer of 18 January 2002, Official Report, column 507W, whether he has commissioned research on the impact on the health of mental health service users of the implementation of his Department's benefits policies; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: No research on this topic has been commissioned since 18 January 2002. DWP has an annual cycle for commissioning research, as set out in The Forward Look 2001 Cm 5338, London: TSO, 2001. The DWP research programme for 200203 is currently being finalised and will be published in due course.

Basic State Pension

Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will calculate the total cost of the basic state pension if it were increased to minimum income guarantee levels for (a) over 75s and (b) over 80s, and increased in line with earnings until (i) 2010, (ii) 2020, (iii) 2030, (iv) 2040 and (v) 2050 (A) in real terms and (B) expressed as a proportion of gross domestic product.

Ian McCartney: The information requested is in the table.
	
		
			   Real terms ( billion) As percentage of GDP 
		
		
			  Cost of BSP assuming it is increased to MIG levels for over 75s and earnings uprated 
			 2010 51 4.3 
			 2020 62 4.4 
			 2030 85 5.0 
			 2040 109 5.4 
			 2050 127 5.3 
			
			  Cost of BSP assuming it is increased to MIG levels for over 80s and earnings uprated 
			 2010 48 4.0 
			 2020 56 3.9 
			 2030 74 4.4 
			 2040 89 4.4 
			 2050 105 4.4 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Real term figures are in 200203 price terms.
	2. It is assumed that the basic state pension will rise by 2.5 per cent. or inflation, whichever is the greater.
	3. Long term earnings growth is assumed to be 1.75 per cent. and long term GDP growth is assumed to be 1.75 per cent. to be consistent with the earnings assumption.

Parliamentary Questions

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many oral questions he has transferred to other Departments in each of the last 18 months.

Maria Eagle: The available information is in the table.
	
		Oral questions transferred to other Departments
		
			 Month questions tabled Number transferred 
		
		
			 June 2001 3 
			 July 2001 1 
			 October 2001 2 
			 November 2001 1 
			 January 2002 3 
			 February 2002 0 
			 March 2002 2 
			 May 2002 1 
			 June 2002 3

Child Poverty

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the child poverty levels in the Portsmouth, South constituency were in (a) 1997 and (b) 2001; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: Poverty is a complex multi- dimensional issue, affecting many aspects of children's livesincluding income, health, housing, the quality of their environment and opportunities to learn. There is therefore no single measure of 'child poverty levels' in the Portsmouth, South constituency.

Single Parents

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what (a) financial and (b) non-financial assistance is given to single parents; and what proposals the Government have to increase levels of support;
	(2)  what help is given to single parents to (a) re-enter work and (b) enter education.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 3 July 2002
	The Government believe that work is the best route out of poverty and research has shown that nine out of ten lone parents want to work, either now or in the future. Lone parents face problems on moving into work due to balancing their work life with their caring responsibilities. That is why we are providing extra help to reduce these inequalities and offer lone parents a range of choices to gain more independence by moving into work.
	We have introduced measures to make work pay, including the working families' tax credit and the national minimum wage. From 2003 a lone parent working 16 hours a week will have a guaranteed minimum income of 179 a week. We have also provided help to make work possible for lone parents through the child care tax credit and the national child care strategy, which since 1997 has created new places for the benefit of more than 900,000 children.
	The New Deal for Lone Parents is available to all lone parents and offers a personalised service of advice and guidance. Personal advisers help with identifying child care, give advice on work and training opportunities and continue to offer in-work support once the lone parent is in work. Nearly 300,000 lone parents so far have participated in the programme and over half have found work. The programme now offers greater training flexibility by funding work-focused courses in skills that will be of benefit in the labour market, such as basic IT skills. In addition, everyone who joins any of the New Deal programmes is now assessed for literacy and numeracy needs and offered high quality learning opportunities.
	We are continuing to roll out compulsory personal adviser meetings for lone parents claiming income support to ensure that they are aware of the range of help and support we have introduced to enable them to move into work. Our new Jobcentre Plus offices are providing an integrated service to ensure that lone parents receive the benefits they are entitled to and the help they need to move into work.
	The Government are encouraging everyone with the necessary qualifications, including lone parents, to enter further and higher education. For further education institutions in England 1 we have increased the ring-fenced budget for child care funds by 20 per cent. to 36 million in 200203. In higher education in England 1 , lone parents have access to a range of support including child care grants, a grant for school meals and a grant towards travel, books and equipment.
	1 Further and higher education arrangements in Scotland and Wales may differ from those in England.

TREASURY

Government Communications

Mark Todd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what advice he has given to Government Departments on the disclosure of OGC Gateway reviews to hon. Members.

Paul Boateng: Guidance has been issued and is available on the OGC website (www.ogc.gov.uk)

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the EU directives and regulations that have been implemented through his Department in 2002; and what was the cost of each to public funds.

Ruth Kelly: The following directives and regulations have been implemented to this date in 2002:
	directive 2000/46/EC on the taking-up, pursuit of and prudential supervision of the business of electronic money institutions;
	directive 2000/28/EC relating to the taking-up and pursuit of the business of credit institutions;
	directive 44/2001 on mutual assistance recovery;
	the Protection of the Euro against Counterfeiting Regulations 2001 (SI 2001/3948) specified criminal penalties for breach of Council Regulation (EC) No.1338/2001;
	the provisions of the Customs Code Committee came into force on 1 January 2002, amending the preferential agreement with the Faroe Islands, by introducing legal provisions for proof of origin.
	I am not aware of any further directives being implemented in 2002, but the Department does not keep a single record of this information and it could be assembled only at disproportionate cost. Similarly, calculating the cost to public funds of the directives' implementation would involve disproportionate cost.

EU Directives

John Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the EU directives relating to his Department which have been (a) amended and (b) repealed in 2002.

Ruth Kelly: The following directives have been amended to this date in 2002:
	directive 2000/12/EC relating to the taking-up and pursuit of the business of credit institutions was amended in 2002, by directive 2000/28/EC;
	directive 77/388 regarding value added tax arrangements applicable to electronically supplied services and broadcasting was amended by directive 2002/38/EC and regulation 792/2002, with effect from 1 July 2003;
	directives 92/79/EEC, 92/80/EEC and 95/59/EC concerning the structure and rates of excise duty applied on manufactured tobacco were amended by directive 2002/10/EC;
	directive 79/267/EEC as regards the solvency margin requirements for life assurance undertakings was amended by directive 2002/12/EC;
	directive 73/239/EEC as regards the solvency margin requirements for non-life insurance undertakings was amended by directive 2002/13/EC.
	No directive relating specifically to my Department was repealed in 2002.
	I am not aware of any further directives being amended or repealed in 2002, but this Department does not keep a single record of this information and it could be assembled only at disproportionate cost.

Banking Licences

Keith Vaz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which banking licences have been (a) granted and (b) refused since 1 May 1997.

Ruth Kelly: The information is as follows:
	(a) In the period between 1 May 1997 and 30 November 2001, a total of 42 institutions were granted banking licences under the Banking Act 1987. Since 1 December 2001, one firm has been authorised as a bank under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, and it appears on the Financial Services Authority's public register. A detailed list of these 43 firms follows.
	(b) In the period between 1 May 1997 and 30 November 2001, a total of three institutions applied for authorisation under the Banking Act 1987 but did not proceed through to authorisation. In the period from 1 December 2001, no applications for banks have been formally refused. The names of firms which apply for authorisation have at all times remained confidential between the firm and the relevant supervisor, until the firm has been authorised.
	Additions to Banking Act list from 1 May 1997
	Alliance and Leicester plc
	Bank of Cyprus Ltd.
	Halifax plc
	Legal and General Bank Ltd.
	Philippine National Bank (Europe) plc
	Woolwich plc
	The Korea Development Bank
	Bristol and West plc
	Northern Rock plc
	Wachovia Bank NA
	Housing and Commercial Bank, Korea
	Standard Life Bank Ltd.
	Tesco Personal Finance Ltd.
	Ghana International Bank plc
	State Street Bank Europe Limited
	UBS AG
	Hua Nan Commercial Bank Ltd.
	Providian National Bank
	Alliance Trust Savings Ltd.
	Morgan Stanley Dean Witter Bank Ltd.
	Bank Mandiri (Europe) Ltd.
	Zurich Bank plc
	Israel Discount Bank Ltd.
	Bumiputra Commerce Bank Berhad
	J P Morgan International Bank Ltd.
	DLJ Bank
	Multi Commercial Bank (UK) Ltd.
	AMP Bank Ltd.
	UBS Warburg Ltd.
	Capital One Bank (Europe) plc
	Schroder and Co. Ltd.
	Bank One Capital Markets Ltd.
	Bradford and Bingley plc
	Dao Heng Bank Ltd.
	Fleet Bank (Europe) Ltd.
	Habib Allied International Bank plc
	Bank Sepah International plc
	Goldfish Bank Ltd.
	Melli Bank plc
	Pakistan International Bank (UK) Ltd.
	Persia International Bank plc
	Sonali Bank (UK) Ltd.
	Additions under Financial Services and Markets Act 2000
	The Charity Bank Ltd.: 30 April 2002

Economic Growth

Hywel Williams: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the most recent estimates are for GDP growth for (a) the UK, (b) England, (c) Scotland, (d) Northern Ireland, (e) Wales and (f) each EU Objective 1 area.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Hywel Williams, dated 8 July 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question on estimates of GDP growth of the countries and EU Objective 1 areas of the United Kingdom. I am replying in his absence. (66165)
	Growth rates are normally calculated on the basis of data at constant prices. However, regional GDP data are only available on a current price basis, in the absence of regional deflators. The growth rates shown in the table below will therefore include the effects of inflation.
	The latest GDP estimates for the countries of the United Kingdom and the English regions are available up to 1999, and for the sub-regions (NUTS-2 areas) up to 1998. These data form the basis for the growth rates shown in table 1 below. The sub-regions Merseyside; South Yorkshire; Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly; and West Wales and the Valleys are the four UK areas that currently have full Objective 1 status. Northern Ireland and the Highlands and Islands did not qualify for Objective 1 funding in the current round but are in receipt of transitional funding and are included for completeness.
	Data up to 2000 are expected to be published at the end of 2002.
	The data referred to in this answer are available in the House of Commons Library and on the web at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/ regionalaccounts.
	
		Table 1: Gross domestic product, current basic prices,  million Year-on-year percentage increase
		
			   Provisional  
			  1996 1997 1998 1999 
		
		
			 United Kingdom(28) 5.7 6.5 6.1 3.8 
			  
			 Countries of the United Kingdom(28) 
			 England 6.1 7.1 6.2 3.9 
			 Scotland 3.0 2.3 6.0 3.1 
			 Wales 4.0 3.7 5.5 3.9 
			 Northern Ireland(29) 4.5 6.8 3.4 3.0 
			  
			 Objective 1 areas 
			 Merseyside 4.4 4.6 5.0 (30) 
			 South Yorkshire 6.6 7.1 4.7 (30) 
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 8.0 7.6 5.7 (30) 
			 West Wales and the Valleys 5.0 4.0 4.6 (30) 
			  
			 Transition areas 
			 Highlands and Islands 1.3 2.8 4.7 (30) 
			 Northern Ireland(29) 4.5 6.8 3.4 3.0 
		
	
	(28) Excluding Extra-Regio and the Statistical Discrepancy
	(29) Northern Ireland is both a NUTS-1 and NUTS-2 area
	(30) n/a

Departmental Energy Use

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the estimated (a) level and (b) cost of energy use in his Department and associated agencies was in each year since 1997; what proportion of energy was generated from renewable sources; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 3 July 2002 by my right hon. Friend the Minister of State, Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Office for National Statistics

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on which projects the public sector classification committee of the Office of National Statistics has been asked to comment since 1 January.

Ruth Kelly: The answer requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Taylor, dated 8 July 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question on which projects the Public Sector Classification Committee of the Office for National Statistics has been asked to comment since 1st January. I am replying in his absence. (66718)
	The public sector classification committee (PSCC) considers a wide range of projects as the need arises. Four of these are currently confidential or market sensitive. The others are in the list below.
	New Tax Creditsdiscussion complete in 2001, but announced since 1 January.
	Network Rail
	Support for insurance of terrorist risks to aviation industry
	Sale and leaseback of buildings in Austria
	Electricity Companies Renewables Obligation
	Diamond Synchrotron Centre Ltd
	Offshore Petroleum Licensing
	Treatment of legacy European currencies
	Guarantees for loans to Railtrack plc in Administration
	Royal household departments
	Imputed taxes and subsidiesdeveloping general principles
	NTL restructuringtreatment of debt for equity swap
	Office of Communications (OFCOM)
	Government support for Network Rail

Education Maintenance Allowance

Karen Buck: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what evidence there is from the evaluation of the education maintenance allowance pilots of the effect on family income of replacing child benefit on participation in education by young people aged 16 to 19 years.

Paul Boateng: The Government are piloting an educational maintenance allowance in 56 local education authorities. EMAs provide financial support for 16 to 19 year olds to continue in education through provision of weekly payments and bonuses for retention and achievement. The Department for Education and Skills published the latest evaluation of the pilots on 3 July. Copies of this are available in the House Library.

Individual Savings Account

Peter Duncan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) mini and (b) maxi ISAs were purchased in the last tax year.

Ruth Kelly: Estimates of the number of mini and maxi ISA accounts receiving subscriptions and the amount of these subscriptions for 200102 are contained in table 9.4 of Inland Revenue Statistics. The latest version is on the Inland Revenue's website: http://www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/ stats/isa/isat011.htm

Part-time Workers

Bob Laxton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average weekly hours of work for part-time workers were in 2001 in the United Kingdom.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Bob Laxton, dated 8 July 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the average hours worked by part-time workers in the United Kingdom. I am replying in his absence. (67219)
	The Labour Force Survey (LFS) estimate of the average actual hours of part-time workers for the twelve month period ending December 2001 is 15.6 hours.

PISA 2000 Survey

Nick Gibb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what proportion of pupils in the PISA 2000 Survey achieved the correct answer in the Reading Unit 1 section of the literacy test in (a) Question 1, (b) Question 2, (c) Question 3, (d) Question 4 and (e) Question 5.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Nick Gibb, dated 8 July 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning how many and what proportion of pupils in the PISA 2000 Survey achieved the correct answer in the Reading Unit 1 section of the literacy test in (a) Question 1, (b) Question 2, (c) Question 3, (d) Question 4 and (e) Question 5. I am replying in his absence. (67842)
	The proportion of students who answered individual questions correctly is available for all items for each country in the Test Item Compendia available at http://pisaweb.acer.edu.au/oecd_pisa_datas1.html

PISA 2000 Survey

Nick Gibb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer who in (a) the Department for Education and Skills, (b) the Office of National Statistics and (c) other Departments was responsible for (i) devising the sample selection, (ii) making the sample selection and (iii) compiling the list of schools used in the PISA 2000 survey.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Nick Gibb, dated 8 July 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning who in (a) the Department for Education and Skills, (b) the Office of National Statistics and (c) other departments was responsible for (i) devising the sample selection, (ii) making the sample selection and (iii) compiling the list of schools used in the PISA 2000 survey. I am replying in his absence. (67843)
	The sampling frame used in PISA and the sample design are described in Appendix A of Student Achievement in EnglandResults in reading, mathematical and scientific literacy among 15-year-olds from the OECD PISA 2000 study, published by ONS in May 2002.
	A number of people were involved in devising the sample selection in consultation with the international sampling referees.
	The report is available free at: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/ statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=8169Mo re=N

PISA 2000 Survey

Nick Gibb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 1 July 2002, Official Report, column 117W, whether schools were permitted to remove pupils from the selection made by PISA; and whether pupils were omitted from the list of students born in 1984 and on what basis.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Gibb, dated 8 July 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question pursuant to the answer given on 1st July, Official Report, column 117W, whether schools were permitted to remove pupils from the selection made by PISA; and whether any pupils were omitted from the list of students born in 1984 and, if so, on what basis. I am replying in his absence. (67864)
	The protocols for selecting students within schools and for excluding students are described in Appendix A of Student Achievement in EnglandResults in reading, mathematical and scientific literacy among 15-year-olds from the OECD PISA 2000 study, published by ONS in May 2002.
	The report is available free at: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/ statbase/Product.asp?v1nk=8169Mo re=N

PISA 2000 Survey

Nick Gibb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if the questions asked in the follow-up sessions that were held for pupils taking the PISA 2000 tests were the same as those in the original tests.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Gibb, dated 8 July 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking if the questions asked in the follow-up sessions that were held for pupils taking the PISA 2000 tests were the same as those in the original tests. I am replying in his absence. (67844)
	The circumstances under which students were assessed in a follow-up session and the construction of the PISA test are described in Section A.3 and 1.6 of Student Achievement in EnglandResults in reading, mathematical and scientific literacy among 15-year-olds from the OECD PISA 2000 study, published by ONS in May 2002.
	The tests used in the follow-up sessions were the same as those in the original testing session. The PISA test contained over 200 items in total, equivalent to 7 hours of testing time. Not all students were given the same questions. Each student was given one of nine different test booklets with different combinations of items. The tests were administered by test administrators who were independent of the school. Tests were brought to the school by the administrator on the day of testing and removed after testing. Only 3% of students were assessed in a follow-up session.
	The report is available free at: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/ statbase/Product.asp?v1nk=8169More=N

Devolution

Angus Robertson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the EU Insurance Committee is next due to meet; whether representatives of the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The EU Insurance Committee is due to next meet on 26 and 27 November 2002.
	The UK is represented by an official from HM Treasury and a representative from the Financial Services Authority. As financial regulation is not a devolved matter, representatives of the Scottish Executive have not attended the committee.

Devolution

Angus Robertson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the EU Banking Advisory Committee is next due to meet; whether representatives of the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The EU Banking Advisory Committee is due to meet next on 9 October 2002.
	The UK is represented by an official from HM Treasury and two from the Financial Services Authority. As financial regulation is not a devolved matter, representatives of the Scottish Executive have not attended the committee.

Adoptions

Paul Burstow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many adoptions have been completed in each of the last five years.

Ruth Kelly: The answer requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Paul Burstow, dated 8 July 2002
	The Registrar General for England and Wales has been asked to reply to your recent question on the number of adoptions completed in each of the last five years. I am replying in his absence. (67161)
	The information requested is given in the table.
	
		Number of adoptions in England and Wales in each of the last five years
		
			  Number of adoptions 
		
		
			 1997 5,212 
			 1998 4,617 
			 1999 4,988 
			 2000 5,036 
			 2001 5,131

Statistics

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the statistics that are collected by his Department by English parliamentary constituency; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. David Laws, dated 8 July 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question on which statistics are collected by English Parliamentary Constituency. I am replying in his absence. (67099)
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) collects a wide range of statistics. However, they are not collected at Parliamentary Constituency level for a number of reasons. In particular, most of the statistics collected at a local level are based on administrative areas such as local authorities, and these do not always share boundaries with Parliamentary Constituencies.
	Members of the Government Statistical Service (GSS) in all Government Departments provide a statistical service to the House of Commons Library.
	The House of Commons Library provides a tailored service for MP's. Statistics that can often be provided at Parliamentary Constituency level include economic status (employment, unemployment and inactivity), claimant count, employee jobs, average earnings and Census data. Also, many statistics that are available at a lower level can generally be aggregated to Parliamentary Constituency level. This includes the increasing range of statistics at ward level becoming available through ONS's Neighbourhood Statistics Service (www.statistics.gov.uk/ neighbourhood).

Excess Profits

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if there is a standard definition of excess profits which is used by the Government; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: There is no standard definition of excess profit used by the Government.

Taxation

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 26 June 2002, Official Report, column 945W, on taxation, for what reason the figures in the answer included benefit changes; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The figures in the answer referred to included benefit changes in order to provide a comprehensive picture of the cumulative impact on households across the income distribution of Budget measures introduced over the last Parliament.

Lone Parents

Vera Baird: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to make provision to enable lone parents to maintain stable child care arrangements during a period of temporary unemployment once the new tax credits have come into force in April 2003.

Dawn Primarolo: The working tax credit, which includes support for the costs of eligible child care, is designed to encourage people to take up work and to make work pay for low-income households. So entitlement to it will depend on working the required number of hours. It will be based on the hours normally worked by the claimant and will be able, as a result, to continue providing support for short periods when the claimant is unable to work their usual hours. It will also be able to cover short gaps between jobs.
	For longer breaks in employment, we will continue to provide help through other channels, especially for lone parents who need to use child care. Lone parents can receive financial assistance through the Adviser Discretion Fund, where up-front child care costs represent a barrier to moving into work. From April 2003 there will also be a dedicated child care co-ordinator in every Jobcentre Plus district to help jobseekers with children to access information on child care provision in their area.

Tax Credits (Scotland)

David Willetts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many families in Scotland are in receipt of (a) the working families tax credit and (b) the child tax credit.

Dawn Primarolo: For the number receiving the working families tax credit, I refer the hon. Member to my answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Jarrow (Mr. Hepburn) on 16 January 2002, Official Report, column 293W. The number of families who are eligible for the children's tax credit in Scotland is estimated to be 400,000.

LORD CHANCELLOR

Computers

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many computers were replaced in his Department in each of the past three years; how the replaced units were disposed of and by which companies; and at what cost.

Yvette Cooper: It is the policy of the Lord Chancellor's Department to try to make surplus IT equipment available to schools and other non-profit making bodies at low cost. In disposing of its computers therefore, the Department uses Recycle-IT! the UK's largest computer re-use project. They supply second-user systems tailored to the needs of the voluntary, church, education and disabled organisations, embryonic businesses and Third World countries. As Recycle-IT! do not charge for this service, there is no cost to the Department for disposing of redundant equipment.
	The following table relates to the limited number of PCs owned and managed directly by the Department. It shows the total number of computers disposed of in each of the last three financial years. It also shows the total number of those computers, which were replaced along with the cost of the replacement computers.
	
		
			   Disposed Replaced Cost of replacement 
		
		
			 19992000 302 151 103,000 
			 200001 415 365 435,660 
			 200102 84 0 0 
			  
			 Total 801 516 538,660 
		
	
	The Departments PFI partners own the majority of the IT equipment used. The contract stipulates that 70 per cent. of the equipment provided under the contract must be no more than three years old, and that none should be more than five years old. There are currently 2,800 PC's and laptop computers provided by our PFI supplier. The Department also encourages its PFI partners to use Recycle-IT!

Knutsford Crown Court

George Osborne: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what repairs and maintenance is being carried out to Knutsford Crown court; and how much the programme costs.

Yvette Cooper: Following advice from our specialist conservation consultant, the Lord Chancellor's Department are currently taking forward a project to repair the damaged ceiling to courtroom one (including minor roof repairs), at an estimated cost of 29,000. The Department is also planning to repair the boilers at an estimated cost of 4,000.

Special Advisers

Andrew Turner: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many special advisers were employed by the Lord Chancellor's Department (a) between 1 May and 31 December 1997 and (b) in each year from 1998 to 2001 inclusive; and what the total amount spent on special advisers by the Department was in each of those years.

Yvette Cooper: The Department employed no special advisers between 1 May and 31 December 1997 and employed one special adviser in each of the financial years 199899, 19992000 and 200001. The salaries of special advisers are negotiated individually within the stated pay scale which, for each the years in question, was as follows:
	199899:
	up to 74,954 (from 1 April)
	up to 76,056 (from 1 December)
	19992000
	up to 78,186
	200001
	up to 80,453.
	Details of costs are not given in order to protect the privacy of the appointee concerned, in line with exemption 12 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Special Advisers

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will list the number and expected cost to the Lord Chancellor's Department of special advisers in (a) 200102 and (b) 200203.

Yvette Cooper: There was one special adviser in the department as at 13 March 2002. The salaries of special advisers are negotiated individually within the stated pay range (up to 125,000, although the Special Advisers Remuneration Committee may award salaries up to 90,000 only: salaries above that figure are set by the Prime Minister). Details of expected costs are not given in order to protect the privacy of the appointee concerned, in line with exemption 12 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Libra Project

Nigel Evans: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what estimate he has made of the cost to the Government of a failure of the Libra project to deliver on its core case management application.

Yvette Cooper: Delivery of a central part of the contractthe office infrastructure and networkis over 75 per cent. complete and office services are being delivered to over 8,500 magistrates court staff.
	There have been delays in delivering the software application. We have been in discussion with Fujitsu Services (formerly ICL) on the impact of the delay and to determine the best way forward for the project. The resolution is expected shortly, and the House will be informed of the outcome.
	We remain determined to provide magistrates courts with modern computer equipment and standardised IT software. If Fujitsu Systems failed to deliver the Libra software, it would be necessary to meet the requirement from elsewhere in the market. Costs would be dependent on the market conditions and on negotiations.

Chief Justice of Germany

Keith Vaz: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when she last met the Chief Justice of Germany.

Rosie Winterton: Neither my right hon. Friend the Lord Chancellor, nor my ministerial colleagues have met the Chief Justice of Germany.

Buildings Insurance

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what the cost of buildings insurance to the Lord Chancellor's Department was (a) before and (b) after 11 September 2001.

Rosie Winterton: Departments are required to comply with the Government's general policy on insurance which is set out in Government accounting, Chapter 30, para 30.2.5, which notes that Government do not need to purchase insurance to protect the viability of its business and should consider insurance only where the value of claims met would exceed the cost of the insurance premiums. Commercial insurance of a building is acceptable in cases where (a) insurance is a condition of a lease (b) the lessor will not accept a Government indemnity (c) incurring the total cost of the accommodation in question, including the cost of the insurance is more cost effective than other accommodation options [Government Accounting, para 30.2.11a]
	The Lord Chancellor's Department incurs insurance costs as a condition of their lease on various leasehold properties they occupy through the landlord service charges levied. Details of the annual insurance premiums per property pre and post 11 September are not available and the Department would incur a disproportionate cost establishing this information.

Legal Aid Solicitors (Wales)

Ian Lucas: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what estimate he has made of the shortfall of legal aid solicitors in Wales, broken down by (a) subject and (b) county.

Rosie Winterton: The Legal Services Commission contracts with both quality assured solicitors' firms and not-for-profit organisations to provide legal services which meet the identified priority needs for those services. The Commission is confident that there is sufficient provision in Wales, in all categories of law and in all counties. However, it is developing and improving coverage.
	For civil legal aid contracts with solicitors' firms, the Commission allocates a defined number of cases in specified categories of law. In its contracts with not-for-profit organisations, the Commission allocates a defined number of caseworker hours in specified categories of law. The allocation of cases and time throughout 200102 exceeded the number of cases actually started. There is no evidence at present of a shortfall of civil legal aid providers in any category of law in Wales.
	The Wales Regional Legal Services Committee is preparing a report on how well the Commission's civil contracts are currently meeting legal need. The report, which will be issued this autumn, will also identify any remaining priorities for new contracts in the next financial year.
	For criminal defence work, the Commission has no evidence at present of any shortfall in the number of contracted solicitors' firms undertaking criminal defence work in Wales.

Parliamentary Questions

Simon Thomas: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many oral questions she has transferred to other departments in each of the last 18 months.

Rosie Winterton: The Lord Chancellor's Department only transfers Parliamentary Questions when it is more appropriate for another Government Department to answer. The information requested is set out in the following table.
	
		
			  2001 2002 
			  Month Number of questions transferred and to which Department Number of questions transferred and to which Department 
		
		
			 January  0 
			 February  Three to Home Office 
			 March  0 
			 April  Three to Home Office 
			 May  (31)n/a 
			 June (31)n/a One to Home Office 
			   One to Prime Minister 
			 July One to FCO One to Home Office 
			 August (31)n/a  
			 September (31)n/a  
			 October (31)n/a  
			 November 0  
			 December One to Home Office  
		
	
	(31) Months that the Lord Chancellor's Department had no oral question time

Civil Courts

Keith Vaz: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many court staff he estimates will be made redundant as a result of his proposals to modernise the civil courts.

Yvette Cooper: The timetable and extent of the courts Tribunals Modernisation Programme has not been finalised so it is not yet known what the subsequent effect on staffing levels will be. Initial business planning assumptions indicate that it may be possible to minimise redundancies through the effective management of retirement and recruitment policies, natural turnover of staff and by exploring opportunities for staff in other areas such as the Immigration Appeal Appellate. Redundancy options will be explored only as a last resort, and there will be full consultation with the relevant trade unions throughout.

Rape

Vera Baird: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what role he intends his Department to take in the cross-departmental committee on the HMIC/CPSI thematic report on rape.

Yvette Cooper: The Director of the Crown court is representing the Department on the cross-departmental committee to take forward the comments made in the report in relation to the listing of cases with allegations of rape. He has asked that the comments about the listing of rape cases be considered in thematic review of listing which is currently being carried out by the joint Criminal Justice Inspectorates.

Census 1901 Website

Alan Beith: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when the 1901 census website will be available for access.

Rosie Winterton: The PRO and QinetiQ Ltd. are working together to get the system back on line as soon as possible.

Patients (Fluids)

Brian Iddon: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department whether the responses received from the consultation on 'Making Decisions' were analysed to determine how many respondents were (a) in favour and (b) against the withholding of food and fluids from incapacitated patients not actually dying; and whether such an analysis will be conducted following the consultation on 'Withholding and Withdrawing Life-Prolonging Treatments: Good Practice in Decision Making'.

Rosie Winterton: 'Making Decisions' is a policy statement setting out the Government's proposals for making decisions on behalf of mentally incapacitated adults. It was issued in 1999 following on from a consultation paper: Who Decides? Making Decisions on Behalf of Mentally Incapacitated Adults. The question posed by the hon. Member was not asked in that consultation paper. 'Withholding and Withdrawing Life-Prolonging Treatments: Good Practice in Decision Making' has recently been produced by the General Medical Council, not by my Department.

Ministerial Visits

Keith Vaz: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many visits to EU applicant countries she and her Ministers have made since 1 January 2001.

Rosie Winterton: My right hon. Friend Baroness Scotland of Asthal QC and former LCD Minister Lord Bach have both visited a number of EU applicant countries since 1 January 2001. The dates are provided in the following table.
	
		
			 Minister Country Date 
		
		
			 Lord Bach Czech Republic 24 January 2001 
			 Lord Bach Slovak Republic 8 March 2001 
			 Baroness Scotland Slovak Republic 1820 December 2001 
			 Baroness Scotland Poland 2325 January 2002 
			 Baroness Scotland Bulgaria 2931 January 2002

Building Values

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will list the buildings owned by the Lord Chancellor's Department and estimate the market value of each of them.

Yvette Cooper: The National Asset Register, published in July 2001 (Cm 5221), lists assets owned by each Department and their valuation.

Ministerial Salaries

John Bercow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what the annual cost was of ministerial salaries in her Department in (a) 199798 and (b) 200102.

Yvette Cooper: The levels of ministerial salaries are recommended by the senior salaries review body. From May 1997, in this Department there was one Cabinet Minister (the Lord Chancellor) at an annual salary of 140,665, and one parliamentary secretary at an annual salary of 23,623. From June 2001, there was one Cabinet Minister (again, the Lord Chancellor) at an annual salary of 173,875; one parliamentary secretary (House of Lords) at an annual salary of 60,961; and two parliamentary secretaries (House of Commons) at an annual salary of 26,835.

Community Service Orders

Nick Gibb: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many community service orders were extinguished without being served in each year since 1995.

Hilary Benn: I have been asked to reply.
	The number of community punishment orders (formerly community service orders) which terminated before completion of the order in each year since 1995 in England and Wales was as follows:
	
		
			 Year Number 
		
		
			 1995 14,700 
			 1996 14,400 
			 1997 13,400 
			 1998 12,700 
			 1999 12,300 
			 2000(32) 13,500 
		
	
	(32) Latest year for which complete information is available

Community Service Orders

Nick Gibb: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many community service punishments were handed down by magistrates' courts in each year since 1990; and what proportion of these sentences were served.

Hilary Benn: I have been asked to reply.
	The number of persons sentenced by magistrates' courts to community punishment orders (CPOs) (formerly community service orders) and supervised by the probation service in England and Wales for each year since 1990 was as follows:
	
		
			 Year Number 
		
		
			 1990 26,500 
			 1991 30,000 
			 1992 31,600 
			 1993 35,700 
			 1994 38,900 
			 1995 38,100 
			 1996 37,200 
			 1997 37,900 
			 1998(34) 39,800 
			 1999(34) 42,200 
			 2000(34),(35) 43,600 
		
	
	(33) Excludes (CPOs) given for breach.
	(34) Includes (CPOs) for persistent petty offenders and for fine deaulters.
	(35) Latest year for which complete information is available.
	The proportion of community punishment orders (formerly community service orders) terminating each year since 1990 which were successfully completed was as follows:
	
		
			 Year Percentage 
		
		
			 1990 69 
			 1991 70 
			 1992 72 
			 1993 71 
			 1994 70 
			 1995 71 
			 1996 71 
			 1997 71 
			 1998 72 
			 1999 72 
			 2000(36) 71 
		
	
	(36) Latest year for which complete information is available.

HEALTH

Primary Care Trusts

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many primary care trusts had finance directors in post on 1 April; and what the total budget is for these organisations with finance directors in place;
	(2)  how many primary care trusts were in place on 1 April; and what the total budget is for these organisations.

John Hutton: Three hundred and three primary care trusts (PCTs), including Northumberland which has been designated a care trust, were in operation on 1 April 2002. We have allocated 41.5 billion in total to health authorities (HAs) for 200203. Of this, 40.9 billion has been shared by HAs between their constituent PCTs.
	The number of PCTs that had directors of finance in place on 1 April 2002 was 208. Acting directors of finance are in place where a permanent appointment has not yet been made. Their share of HA allocations was 27.9 billion for 200203.
	An element of the allocation shared between PCTs will be retained at HA level for HA level functions, collective commissioning and other items funded at HA level. Information on this is not collected centrally.

Nurses

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what financial assistance is provided to those nurses wishing to return to the NHS for (a) tuition fees, (b) subsistence and (c) travel costs; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: Health care professions (including nurses), returning to the national health service benefit from a returners' package which includes:
	free refresher training
	a minimum of 1,000 financial support while retaining (1,500 for midwives)
	assistance with child care support of up to 135 per week for one child and 200 for two or more children
	assistance with travel and books.
	Over 70 million has been allocated to build around 150 on-site subsidised nurseries. Around a further 7,500 places will be created by 2004.
	The Government's starter home initiative launched on 6 September 2001 will help the NHS ease staffing shortages in parts of London and the south east.

Herbal Remedies

Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations the UK has made in respect of the EU Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive with specific reference to moves to bring herbal remedies into the regulatory regime dealing with pharmaceutical drugs; and what position the UK has taken on the proposal to extend this to cover combinations of herbs and nutrients.

Hazel Blears: Many herbal remedies in the United Kingdom and elsewhere in the European Union already have a marketing authorisation under European medicines legislation.
	Negotiations on the proposed directive on traditional herbal medicinal products are at an early stage. So far the Government have argued in particular that there should be greater flexibility to take account of non European herbal traditions and that an early date should be set for the review of the scope of the directive in relation to non herbal traditional medicines.
	The medical control agency is holding a consultation exercise on the directive. This is showing that there are varied views on the proposed manufacturing and quality standards. Some respondents, including UK manufacturers of traditional herbal remedies, have argued that the standards are achievable and are necessary in the interests of consumer protection and of the long-term reputation of the herbal sector.
	Others, particularly from the health food sector, have argued that the standards are inappropriate or unnecessary. We have extended the consultation until the end of July in order to allow those with concerns to identify the specific areas where they believe the standards to be over-regulatory. We will further develop the UK negotiating position on this issue once we have assessed the additional information provided during the extended period of consultation.
	We are currently considering representations that have been received during the consultation about the regulatory position on herbal-nutrient combination products.

MMR Vaccine

David Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children have been given the MMR vaccine; and what the Government's targets are.

Hazel Blears: Current immunisation targets are for 95 per cent. of children to be immunised by age two against measles, mumps and rubella; there is no formal target for a reinforcing (booster) dose. The Department recommends that MMR, a combined vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella, is administered in a single dose at between 12 and 15 months of age.
	Information about the percentage of children immunised against measles mumps and rubella by their 2nd birthday, and from 19992000 by their 5th birthday, is contained in the statistical bulletin NHS Immunisation Statistics, England: 200001. A copy of the bulletin is in the Library and can also be found on the Department's website www.doh.gov.uk/public/sb0121.htm.

Radiotherapy

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the meetings he and his Ministers (a) have had and (b) propose to have with NHS trust and health authority chairmen and chief executives to discuss (i) reducing radiotherapy waiting lists and (ii) the associated financial implications of such action.

Hazel Blears: Ministers have not met chairmen and chief executives specifically to discuss reducing radiotherapy waiting times. However, we are taking wide ranging action to improve radiotherapy waiting times including a number of initiatives aimed at tackling the shortage of professionals associated with radiotherapy delivery, major investment in radiotherapy equipment, streamlining radiotherapy delivery through the cancer services collaborative and increased the number of training places for radiographers.

Mental Health

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which agencies are responsible for monitoring and caring for individuals who have been released from a mental hospital; and what arrangements ensure that agencies are co-ordinating these systems.

Jacqui Smith: The lead health service provider, usually the National Health Service Trust, and the local authority social service department have the responsibility for the care of individuals who have been discharged from hospital. The care programme approach provides the framework for the care of people with mental health problems wherever the user is in the system, including residential and community settings. This framework is also used by the probation service, the police, and housing agencies who will be involved in on-going review of care arrangements and risk assessments
	Arrangements for monitoring the care programme approach are set out in the policy booklet: Effective Care Co-ordination in Mental Health Services (Department of Health, October 1999) and An Audit Pack for Monitoring the Care Programme Approach (Department of Health, June 2001).

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action has been taken in respect of each of the recommendations for action of the key area group of the Workforce Action Team on recruitment and retention issues in the mental health field.

John Hutton: The mental health care group workforce team (MHCGWT) is actively taking forward the recommendations of the workforce action team (WAT). The MHCGWT is currently:
	working with Workforce Development Confederations as part of their recruitment and retention agenda;
	ensuring that wider recruitment and retention issues across the NHS include the correct focus on mental health.
	The MHCGWT have set up a recruitment and retention sub-group in order to develop initiatives on:
	an advertisement campaign on mental health recruitment for later this year;
	a community engagement programme to recruit local people into the mental health workforce;
	producing recruitment videos;
	disseminating good practice.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to legislate for the regulation of (a) psychologists, (b) psychotherapists and (c) counsellors.

John Hutton: We have given a high priority to improving service quality in general in the national health service and social care services, as well as in the private sector. A number of initiatives testify to this, including the development of national service frameworks, the establishment of the National Institute for Clinical Excellence and the new framework of clinical governance. These modernised and more accountable professional regulatory arrangements will work alongside NHS quality assurance arrangements to offer much better protection for patients, wherever they are seen.
	Proposals for the regulation of these groups are in the first instance a matter for the health professions council. The Department have indicated that we will be supporting moves to establish a scheme of statutory professional regulation of applied psychologists.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on the women's mental health consultation process.

Jacqui Smith: Preparation of the consultation document for the national women's mental health strategy continues and publication will take place after completion of the current spending review.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate he has made of the proportion of those suffering from severe mental illness (a) who are capable of undertaking paid employment and (b) who undertake paid employment.

Jacqui Smith: This information is not available. However, the psychiatric morbidity survey carried out by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and published in 2001 provided some information on the prevalence of psychiatric disorder by employment status. A copy of this report has been placed in the Library.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the estimated cost is of implementation of the draft Mental Health Bill; and whether such funds are available.

Jacqui Smith: The costs of the Mental Health Bill are being considered as part of the Department's spending review and the timescale for implementation will be determined by the availability of funding from the spending review settlement.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the reason was for his decision on the timing and length of the consultation on the draft Mental Health Bill.

Jacqui Smith: Consultation on the draft Mental Health Bill will run for 12 weeks from 25 June 2002 until 16 September 2002.
	This period is in keeping with the Cabinet Office code of practice guidance on written consultation.
	The Government are committed to introducing legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows and we are therefore consulting on the draft Mental Health Bill at the earliest possible opportunity.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the benefits of early treatment for those with mental health problems.

Jacqui Smith: The Department's research, analysis and information directorate has commissioned a review of current evidence in the field of early intervention in psychosis. This is being undertaken by Professor Max Marshall and is due to be completed by the end of September 2002.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of those people who suffer severe mental illness were first treated for it by compulsion under a section of the Mental Health Act 1983 in each of the last five years.

Jacqui Smith: The information requested is not available in this form.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent reports he has received of people with a diagnosis of severe mental illness being turned away when they ask for treatment.

Jacqui Smith: There have been no reports of people with a diagnosis of severe mental illness being turned away from services.
	The mental health national service framework explicitly states that everyone with severe mental illness should have access to the range of services they need.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average period of untreated psychosis prior to a person receiving treatment was in the last 12 months.

Jacqui Smith: This information is not collected centrally.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent progress has been made on the selection and implementation of instrumentation for the routine measurement of outcomes in mental health.

Jacqui Smith: The Department is developing an outcomes programme pilot for the implementation of instruments, which should be set up by September 2002. The plan to begin routine measurement of outcomes in mental health from April 2003 is currently on target.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the cost is per prison of providing mental health in-reach services in the last year for which figures are available;
	(2)  how much is being spent in 200203 on providing mental health in-reach services in prisons; and how much will be spent in (a) 200304, (b) 200405 and (c) 200506.

Jacqui Smith: During 200102 mental health in-reach services were being established in 18 prisons in England. During 200203 it is planned that in-reach teams should be established in a further 26 prisons. Funding amounting to 3,850,000 has been allocated in 200203 to cover the costs of these developments. Specific allocations are made taking account of participating prisons' type, size and throughput.
	Funding for 200304 and beyond has not yet been decided.

Mental Health

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to increase the number of beds available for the treatment of those with mental ill-health

Jacqui Smith: We have already fulfilled our NHS Plan commitments to create 500 extra secure beds and 320 extra 24-hour staffed beds by April 2001, and are on track to deliver 200 additional long-term secure beds by 2004.
	Crisis resolution teams are dramatically reducing pressure on in-patient beds by 2004 there will be 335 such teams treating 100,000 people a year who would otherwise need admission to hospital.

Mental Health

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what systems are in place to notify (a) police and (b) local authorities about persons who have been placed in a mental hospital being released; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: The Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000 required the police and probation services (the 'responsible authorities') in each of the 42 areas of England and Wales to establish arrangements for assessing and managing the risks posed by sexual and violent offenders. These arrangements include those who have been detained in respect of a conviction by a hospital or guardian ship order within the meaning of the Mental Health Act 1983. These arrangements were introduced in April 2001. Scope to disclose information to the responsible authorities only exists within current legislation, where there is a high risk of harm to self or others, consistent with the Human Rights Act. Responsibility for the arrangements rests with those in charge of care and treatment, bearing in mind the facts of each individual case. The Department will be issuing guidance to ensure that all mental health trusts are appropriately represented in the arrangements.
	New proposals concerning the rights of victims to information are contained within the draft Mental Health Bill published last week, and in relation to information exchange in the accompanying consultation document. We look forward to hearing views on these proposals.

Looked-after Children

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 23 April 2002, Official Report, column 240W, on looked-after children, if he will set out the number of children in residential care broken down by (a) health authority and (b) region in each of the last five years.

Jacqui Smith: The information requested is not collected by health authority. The information available by region is shown in the table.
	
		Number of children looked after in residential placements at -- 31 March 1997
		
			   1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 
		
		
			 England 7,900 8,500 8,300 8,900 8,500 
			 North East 595 555 505 540 505 
			 North West 1,090 1,100 1,115 1,145 1,045 
			 Merseyside 415 455 445 490 410 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 1,000 970 1,005 1,025 940 
			 East Midlands 420 520 540 535 485 
			 West Midlands 800 880 860 950 865 
			 South West 490 530 545 535 555 
			 London 1,600 1,645 1,650 1,960 2,120 
			 Eastern 570 690 665 685 710 
			 South East 920 1,110 930 985 905 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures for children looked after in this table exclude agreed series of short term placements.
	2. Numbers may not add up to totals due to rounding.
	3. Residential placements include secure units, children's homes, hostels, residential schools and placements in other residential settings.
	Source:
	DH statistical return CLA 100

Psycho-surgery

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people underwent psycho-surgery in each of the last five years, broken down by age.

Jacqui Smith: For the purpose of clarity, we refer to psycho-surgery as neuro-surgery for mental disorder.
	While the Department does not collect information on neuro-surgery for mental disorder centrally, the ninth biennial report of the Mental Health Act Commission covering the years 19992001, indicates that nine applications for neuro-surgery for mental disorder were considered (seven in 19992000 and two in 200001). All nine operations were eventually certified to go ahead.
	In the period covered by the previous biennial report of the Mental Health Act Commission (199799), 17 referrals were made to the Commission to consider certifying neuro-surgery for mental disorder. All the cases referred in this reporting period were certified but one patient withdrew consent before the operation took place.
	We do not have the breakdown of the Commission's figures by age groups.

Working Minds

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether Working Minds employers' tool kits are available.

Jacqui Smith: An additional 2,000 copies of the Working Minds employers' toolkit were printed in March 2002. Copies are available from 0870 4430930, fax 0870 4430931, e-mail mindout@codestorm.co.uk

Psychiatric Readmissions

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of progress in meeting the Public Service Agreement Target of reducing the emergency psychiatric readmission rate.

Jacqui Smith: The emergency psychiatric readmission rate has been reduced from the baseline of 14.3 per cent. in 199798 to 12.7 per cent. at the last quarter of 200102.

Obesity

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the role of sport in tackling obesity.

Hazel Blears: Increasing participation in sport has a role to play in raising the rates of physical activity. Low rates of physical activity together with an unhealthy diet contribute to increased rates of obesity. Major cross- Government work has been put in place to raise the level of physical activity, and participation in sport. This includes: 581 million from the new opportunities fund for a physical education and sports programme; the national active sports programme and the Department's recently announced 2.5 million programme of community physical activity pilots, which will test out different community approaches to increasing physical activity. All pilots will involve sport action zones.

Community Day Centres

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many women-only community day centres and services are in place.

Hazel Blears: The information requested is not available centrally.

Endometriosis

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent in each of the past five years into the causes and treatment of endometriosis.

Hazel Blears: The main Government agency for medical research is the Medical Research Council (MRC), which is funded via the Department of Trade and Industry. The Department directly funds research into policy and the delivery of effective practice in health and social care, and provides national health service support funding for research commissioned by the research councils and charities in the NHS.
	The MRC's expenditure on relevant research was 1.7 million in 199798; 1.8 million in 199899; 1.8 million in 19992000; 1.2 million in 200001 and 1.2 million in 200102. The Department's expenditure on directly funded relevant research was nil in 199798; 55,000 in 199899; 85,000 in 19992000; 70,000 in 200001 and 70,000 in 200102.
	In addition, the Department provided NHS support funding for research councils and charities' research, details of which can be found on the national research register on www.doh.gov.uk/research/nrr.htm.

Child and Family Support Service

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people are employed in the Child and Family Support Service.

Jacqui Smith: pursuant to her reply, 7 May 2002, c. 103W
	I regret that my previous reply was incorrect. It should read:
	Information on the whole-time equivalent number of staff employed by councils with social services responsibilities in England in relation to child and family support services at 30 September 2001 is shown in the following table. These figures exclude central and strategic staff and certain other categories of staff who provide more generic services across the range of council responsibilities. No information is available centrally on the numbers of people in the private and voluntary sectors who are providing services to children and families on behalf of councils with social services responsibilities.
	
		Staff employed by councils with social services responsibilities in England on child and family support services (whole-time equivalent)
		
			 Type of staff Whole-time equivalent at 30 September 2001 
		
		
			 Area Office staff (including social work staff, excluding occupational therapists) 21,275 
			   
			 Day Care staff:  
			 Family centres 3,715 
			 Nurseries and play groups 2,260 
			   
			 Residential Care staff:  
			 Children with learning disabilities 2,045 
			 Community homes for children looked after 8,685 
			 Specialist needs establishments 1,110 
			   
			 Occupational therapists 105 
		
	
	Source:
	Form SSDS001, annual return of staff employed in social services departments made by local authorities to the Department of Health.

Iodine Tablets

Jeffrey M Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what preparations have been made to distribute iodine tablets to the population in the event of a nuclear emergency.

John Hutton: The Government have established detailed plans for responding to major incidents. Cross- departmental contingency plans are in place and regular exercises test responses to a range of different threats, including those from radiation. Arrangements for distribution of potassium iodate tablets to the population are included in these exercises.

Health Professions Council

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what representations he has received from professions wishing to be covered by the Health Professions Council;
	(2)  what programme of work his Department has in hand as to the regulation of professions other than those covered by the Health Professions Council; and if he will set out the timetable for such work;
	(3)  what plans he has to add to the professions covered by the Health Professions Council.

John Hutton: It is for the health professions council to consider proposals for the extension of its remit to other professions, and the timing of any such extension would depend on the outcome. I received an approach from the British Psychological Society in March. The Government have also agreed with the general dental council that its powers to register professionals complementary to dentistry (such as dental technicians) should be widened.

Medical Schools

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding each medical school received in each of the past five years.

Margaret Hodge: With the exception of St. George's Medical school, medical schools in England form part of their parent university and are funded through the block grant provided by the Higher Educating Funding Council for England. The HEFCE allocations of block grant for 200203 are published in the Funding Council's report 02/11.
	The funding allocation for St. George's medical school for each of the past five years is as follows:
	
		
			  Funding ( million) Percentage increase year-on-year 
		
		
			 1998 12.134 1.8 
			 1999 12.466 2.1 
			 2000 13.268 4.2 
			 2001 14.744 0.7 
			 2002 16.006 7.4 
		
	
	Note:
	The information is taken from the Higher Education Funding Council for England publication Recurrent grant for 200102: final allocations (report 01/57) which records allocations of recurrent grant to higher education institutions and to further education colleges delivering higher education. Information for previous years in published in equivalent reports, the data for 200203 are provisional. copies of the publication are available at http:// www.hefce.ac.uk/Pubs/